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Seeds of Gratitude give rise to Loves Bloom

Space — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:06:48 +0000

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“If facts are the seeds that later produce knowledge and wisdom, then the emotions and the impressions of the senses are the fertile soil in which the seeds must grow.”

-Rachel Carson

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A wise, dear friend once taught me our Soul-Purpose in this world is to tend our Sacred Garden. I believe this to be true. This same friend, who understands the freedom found in cultivating ones’ own life, is now serving time in the state penitentiary. A paradox in many ways and a profound mirror of something I deeply acknowledge: We teach what we most desire to learn.

How can one such being, over-flowing with potential and a deep desire to be of service, seemingly turn into a ‘bad seed’? More poignantly, is there such a thing? **Or rather, do we choose the optimum conditions for our growth and then remember to bloom where we are planted?**

I believe this to be true, as well.

As we flow through the seasons of Life, we daily plants seeds of possibility in the landscape of the heart. We nourish these with our thoughts and water them with our tears of joy and the sweat of sweet-release. We must be ever diligent to pull suckers and weeds that would choke out the light and steal vital resources required for strong growth.

With attention, we learn each seed has its own Divine timing, we can no more hurry it to fruit than make the sun rise or set.

This, our Sacred Garden, is teacher, playground and friend. Through communion and stewardship we remember ALL things are Sacred, and so come home to thrive in the light of Love, our hearts blooming with planted Seeds of Gratitude.

True to her nature, this same friend catalyzed the creation of a green jobs program for inmates, offering training in emerging fields, as well as daily mentoring in conscious creation and making change from the inside out. Not your standard program, though highly desired — and effective.

We are extremely proud to have been on the ground crew that helped to get it up and growing, and continue to witness the local community embrace, support and evolve the program.

One of many gifts and shifts to come out of this venture, is an evolutionary technique for tending the Sacred Garden, through the power of Gratitude. More specifically, it teaches the art of planting Seeds of Gratitude in the heart, inviting each bearer to remember she/he is the Soul gardener of her/his sacred life, and able to enjoy a fruit-full experience no matter what the ‘outside’ world looks like. Very powerful, indeed!

Now, one can imagine, some of these Sacred Garden plots have been long left untended … they are scarred, perceivably barren, and hardened from a lack of attention, nourishment and care.

This is true for many — for those behind physical bars, and even illusory ones built to protect a tender heart. Self-Love, Self-Nurturance, and Self-Appreciation are vital to replenishing the Sacred Garden within all our hearts and are truly the key to Freedom!

The ‘Seeds of Gratitude’ exercise is so powerfully effective, connective and empowering we are gratefully sharing it here, too! We believe what we’ve witnessed thus far — in the gains, breakthroughs, and miraculous life shifts of those brave-hearts willing to give it a go — this is only a small taste of the great harvest that lay waiting at the heart of Humanity.

Here’s the basic formula:

1) Draw a Gratitude symbol on a piece of paper. Let it take up the whole space! Now, write in the center of the symbol something you are seeking to heal, understand, transform or release.

2) In the outer area, record all that you can be grateful for, in regards to this experience. Be free with this! Be creative! Open your heart-mind to receive wisdoms nurturing Light and write, write, write.

3) Choose one of these gifts. The most touching, profound and clear. Now imagine this is a seed. Place it in your heart, and feel its presence. Feel its wisdom. Feel its gifts growing within you. Opening your heart. Nourishing your Soul. Rising to touch and embody the Light of Love.

4) Imagine taking the words written in the center of Gratitude. Fold them and place them into your heart, too. Feel the Love you have grown in your heart embracing, transforming, enlightening these words, this experience. Stay with this feeling while thinking about this experience. Stay with this for a minimum of 33 seconds.

While you do this, you are re-programming the mind to Love this experience. Cherish it. Embrace it. Be grateful for it! As you do, you become one with the Divine, in Love with All that IS, an expression of the Great-Full-Ness of Life!

Blessed be!

We created a printable .pdf file for easy download and use. Simply click the image below to download the file:

You’ll find the exercise is designed to transform challenge into gift, by revealing the ‘golden’ opportunites of every ‘leaden’ experience. This allows us to quickly move from judgement, shame, blame and guilt into Love, acceptance and appreciation.

Alternately, it can be used as a manifestation tool. Simply place a vision, intent, or waking dream into the center of Gratitude, and write current and emerging ideas, inspirations, connections and resources in the outer circle. This will accelerate and magnetize the forces of creation, as you focus on, feel, and witness the beauty of the Seeds of Gratitude now planted at the heart of YOU!

As you put this powerful process into practice, please come back and share your results with us. This process is a continual evolution — a Come-Unity Sacred Garden, you might say!

On that same note, please feel free to share this exercise widely! Blog it. Post it. Email it onward. Share your experiences, linking here so others, too, can share their golden moments of Gratitude!

Blessings to all as we grow ever inward and onward!

Stacey

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“Within life’s most difficult challenges

lie the seeds of our greatest gifts.”

D. Lightmoon

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Hearts-Up!

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The World Gratitude Gathering is flowing and growing now!

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Join us as we gather to plant seeds of Gratitude, Align with the Hearts calling and embrace the Great-Full-Ness of Life!
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www.WorldGratitude.com/join

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For reasons of confidentiality, the Source of this exercise must remain anonymous. It is with great thanks, Love and deep appreciation that we acknowledge her contributions in the world, and send blessings beyond measure to her, and all the women she serves, that they may know the difference their courage makes in the world!

Ukehi shi’bijii - Thank you for being our heart

Delshanay: The Breath of Life is Love

Space — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:49:34 +0000

Breath of Life is Love.

Full-Spectrum Experience:

Ordo Ab Chao.

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“Mom, pluhleeeeeeeez can we paint?!?!?” for the third time, this one laced with raw commitment and full-intent to play.

As I look around at the chaos of a half-cleaned, quarter packed Master Bathroom, and well — let’s just say the whole house looked this way — I am wondering when order will reign in my home again.

We are preparing to move and in the mid-stages of packing. We’ve still got a month or so to go, now choosing which items can nestle into their traveling stations and which will remain close at hand to enjoy the last remaining light of our current home.

Gabriel is long done with the excitement of packing. The cleaning even less. His heart is already out the door, no care or concept for what it takes to move states with ease and grace.

Hence, this invitation to play.

As we meet eye to eye, I am jolted out of logic and planning into NOW. I see the Light within inviting me to swim in the color of the moment and play with the perfection of connection and co-operative chaos.

I surrender. He ecstatically heads to the paint box — no need to linger further or mince words. We are painting - now.

Again, being half-packed I start to wonder where the blank canvas’ are? Somewhere in the chaos to be sure - either slumbering with dust bunnies or stacked in ‘The Hopefuls’ pack of projects that missed their projected start times.

Then …

My eye spies a canvas, one tucked in the corner of the closet. As I remember, it was the third one started in a single day, and suffered from the ‘creativity crash’ of being toooooo long at play. Its one redeeming value is we managed to paint every inch of it. No white space — just colored chaos.

This is our perfect canvas. We will resurrect what might have died a lonely death AND we have to look no farther. We have everything we need — a canvas, paint, passion, partnership and freedom.

Yes, freedom.

After watching the movie “My kid could paint that”, my mind was opened as I watched Marla Olmstead, child-prodigy and center of controversy, splotch, connect, pull and pool paint. She created with wild abandon and was clearly immersed in bliss. Her parents did not have little cups, ordered by color, and stressing out about a red-tipped brush being dipped into the green cup. (disclaimer: I have been that parent)

Rather, Marla Olmstead was given freedom to be her authentic self and, as a result, produces imaginatively engaging art that delivers order out of chaos.

We have adopted this art style, and what has emerged is an experience beyond words. I will attempt this anyways:

There is no wrong, only Rite. The Rites of Change, Ease, Freedom and Grace. We breathe in possibility and revel in Loves Fierce Light. We laugh and wonder what is next, what ‘that’ is and together remember what it feels like to bring Order out of Chaos.

Thank heavens.

So for now, even if my house exists in the void between these two spaces, my heart is grateful and at peace for having surrendered to the invitation to play.

I breathe freely and know Love. It has called me Home.

Thank you, Gabriel. Thank you, Marla. Thank you, Love.

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This is my second contribution to the Art Every Day Month challenge. You can jump on board or find out more about this heART-full event here:

Freedom Love

Space — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 00:15:40 +0000

“Gratitude lights the way to enthusiasm.
Enthusiasm clears the path to Love.
Love is the key to Freedom.”

~ Sandy Paris

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www.FreedomTribe.com

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As we’ve been preparing the Sustainable Futures/Go Gratitude green jobs program, I’ve had Freedom playing in the background. Feels like a good time to shine some Light on the rhythm and rhyme b’earthed by the Freedom Tribe.

In-Joy!

Eagle’s Gift

Space — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 20:13:08 +0000

“Prairie grass belongs to no one …”