Pay it Forward More!

Critters have been a big part of my life for most of my adult life. The joy of having animals in my life has always made the good times better and the bad times less bad.

Now that I am semi-retired, I am a dog owner, birdwatcher, nature lover and consummate tree hugger. My partner and I take part in the National Wildlife Federation’s program for wildlife habitat, and our property has been a “Certified Wildlife Habitat” for several years now, providing the four basic habitat elements needed for wildlife to thrive : food, water, cover, and safe places to raise young.

Because I care about wildlife and nature, I am a contributor to several organizations that are working to protect wildlife and our fragile eco-systems. Wanting to do more, I started brainstorming ideas that might benefit at least one of my charities.

A few months ago, my partner and I opened an online shop with Etsy. We have begun to have some success, so we started kicking around the idea of “why not a critter site”? After much thought and looking through my many animal related collectibles that I’ve collected for decades (yikes - - that’s starting to sound like a long time!), we decided that putting up a sale site that was geared towards our love of nature and all the critters that share this world with us was a good idea.

So in July, dead in the doldrums of summer, we set up the new online shop
www.CritterConnection.etsy.com and we are donating a portion of every sale to Defenders of Wildlife ( www.defenders.org ).

Hopefully this will be a successful enterprise, both for us clearing out a bit to allow for a more Zen lifestyle, and for “Defenders”, who are in the trenches daily defending that which we love so much - - all those things that are so easily taken for granted until they’re gone !

“Pay it forward” has been a credo we try and live by, this is just a little added effort that we hope will contribute towards making a difference.

Reality, Yours or Mine?

Reality is never the same thing for everyone.  Viewpoint colors all versions of reality, so what may be a rosy thought to one person may be a point of conflict for another.  This was brought home to me very clearly this week when what started out as (at least in my mind) a small and kind gesture turned into a somewhat volatile and conflicted episode.

After some soul searching and a little meditation, I came back to the thought that whatever one believes creates their reality.  A positive attitude is our greatest asset.   If we believe that life is a positive experience - - it will be!
 
Love and respect for yourself as well as others is important to resolving any conflict.  When alternate realities (kind of like alternate universes) become a point of contention, respect and love yourself enough to be able to let it go - - because you own your reality.  Next (and this can be the hard part), love and respect the other person, for their point of view (their reality) is no less valid than your own!  Love is the Universal answer to any question or conflict. 

If another’s attitude seems joyless, obviously this colors their reality.  Sending them silent light and love may be all we can do to help. 

A positive attitude colors the reality we bring into everything we do.  If we can find even small joy in our every day lives we can accomplish more and benefit those around us too!   Keeping centered and positive, we can’t be unhappy for long - - unless we choose that role (reality).      

Make your own reality check.  Are you basically happy?  Do you like yourself?  Do you “play well” with others?         

Remember, we all make our own reality.

The Colors of Life

This is a time of parched land and spent vegetation. (I live in Texas, and we are in a drought - - and it’s been over 100 degrees for what seems like forever!) The upside to all this is how much I appreciate every glimpse of color from the gardens that are trying to survive, putting up blossoms so that the bees and the butterflies are nurtured for another day.

The bright colors against an increasingly browned out landscape make me again realize how important colors are in our everyday existence, for color not only delights the eye, but nurtures the soul !

When I had a “brick and mortar” store, which was mainly filled with antiques and collectibles, I also had a section of my store devoted to crystals and natural gemstones and colors. Often people were drawn to this side of the store, maybe feeling the calming energy I had tried to create with stones and colors.

Because metaphysical philosophies and the study of crystals have been an interest of mine for decades, I always enjoyed talking with customers about colors and crystals. Often a customer would be attracted to a certain color of stone, and after talking with them for a while it would become apparent that they were seeking balance in their lives that corresponded to the color “assigned” to the particular chakra where they were feeling stresses or lack of balance in their daily life. (Like the 7 cosmic colors - which is white light broken into the spectrum of red, yellow, orange, green blue, indigo, violet/white, there are 7 chakras that are our subtle energy centers that correspond with our 7 levels of consciousness.)

Simplified, this means a strong attraction for yellow (which is the 3rd, or Solar Plexus Chakra) could indicate that an individual is struggling with their purpose or ambition, and needs to be more emotionally grounded. This individual may find a citrine, or golden topaz, Amber, or Tiger Eye, synergistic - - and find the stone’s energy connecting with theirs to bring balance to a decision they might be wrestling with. (All other colors corresponding to other chakras and meanings).

I now have two Etsy online shops, and though I can’t talk directly to my customers, I am still trying through use of colors, item descriptions, and great “product shots”, to assist people in finding items and crystals that will add pleasure and maybe even balance in their lives.
Find us as www.crystalcreek.etsy.com & www.crystalcreek2.etsy.com
All the items in our shops are chosen and placed online with “light and love”, because I truly believe good intentions and good energies “can’t hurt” !

And now I’m going to brave the heat and go out to water the flowers and tell them how much I appreciate their colors and beauty !

Healing and Happiness

Kindness is catching! Don’t you feel better when you’ve had a pleasant exchange with someone? Even a brief exchange or act of kindness gives us a “warm fuzzy” feeling.

The benefits to those around us when we act from a more generous spirit are many-fold, but the benefits to ourselves is great too. Even if you don’t really “feel like it”, making an effort daily to be more optimistic brings with it a real positive influence in your feeling of self and overall health.

Nice doesn’t mean being icky sweet or fake, but that you consider others and treat those you meet with kindness, consideration, and respect. It’s been proven in studies that wishing others well and sending positive thoughts their way actually can reduce pain and inflammation of chronic conditions within ourselves !

Meditation, and letting go of angers and resentments and replacing these with forgiveness, love and compassion also go a long way to help reduce pain. Integrative medicine is proving forgiveness is one of the greatest gifts that we can give ourselves.

Every time we replay a moment in our lives filled with regret or resentments we’re “stuck” in our basest element, and we bring all the toxins from that event flooding back into our bodies as we relive it again. For better health we need to be in our higher consciousness where we can choose to cultivate forgiveness, love and compassion.

Start simply and focus your attention on today, what’s happening in life right now - - and leave behind yesterday’s baggage. Being truly present in the now doesn’t leave any room for resentment and old anger.

As we forgive others, we have to remember to forgive ourselves. Who knows, if that chronic back pain lessens, or you experience other improvements in pain or depression, -- what do you have to lose?

Follow the Hummingbirds

Are you tired all day? Stressed out by your cash not matching your bills? Got too many “irons in the fire” so that you always feel you’re playing catch-up with your tasks at hand? Boss on your back? Spouse grouchy, kids need a time-out?

If you feel like this describes you, and you wake up “facing” the day instead
of “seizing” the day, let me share an anecdote from my early morning hours
with you.

When I opened the curtains this morning two tiny jeweled hummingbirds greeted me (or rather the sight of them did). I watched entranced as these two little birds squared off in what was obviously a territorial dual. It started like a dance, first taking the measure of each other, and then the most awesome aerial acrobatics!

For a good ten minutes they soared and swooped, stopping every now and again for a quick energy sip from a flower or one of the many sugar feeders hung out for them. As I watched them in what could have been a duel to the death, I realized they had made it a game of tag instead of a battle. What once was a duel became sport.

In pondering these little birds I thought about their lives in Texas (at 100+ degrees in the summer) and the challenging stresses they must have with our unpredictable weather patterns and continuous need for energy rich food sources, mating and the territorial drive built into their DNA. How did they change a battle into a game?

Maybe taking ego out of the equation, and being surrounded by beauty (after all, their search for food is among the blossoms in our prettiest gardens) they instinctively know that play is more fun than a duel, and that tomorrow will bring it’s own challenges - - but soaring in the sunshine and playing among the flowers today - - is O.K. for today.

Take a page from the hummingbird’s playbook. If today is all we have for sure, this very moment, isn’t it a shame to waste it stressing out? Look for your inner hummingbird, look for the beauty that is around you, be glad you’re alive and celebrate today - - share of yourself with others - - for today!

Communication or "a lick on the nose solves everything"!

Communication

How many of us keep connected with friends and those we love through our wonderful new array of gadgetry that gives us all the benefits of Facebook updating, link-sharing, “tweeting”, etcetera. Does all this new “keeping in touch” really create a bond with our fellow texters? Or after hours of chatting online, do you quit - - and then feel an emptiness, or on some level a feeling of disconnect?

There is no real replacement for true human connection and communication.

Breaking down the word “communicate”, you find the root is “communion”, which translates to: “the act of sharing,a having in common,
participation, fellowship,
a close personal, even spiritual, relationship”.

When we become only “communicators” i.e. just passing along and transmitting information, we leave out the “communion” or exchange of thoughts and ideas that enrich our spirits. Imparting random facts and information doesn’t necessarily bring understanding. Reading random posts on a page isn’t the same as listening to someone talk about what’s going on in their lives.

Keeping in touch with a one-liner, or 140 characters, or even an e-card, isn’t the same as direct contact with those we really care about. The thought is nice (although is it really thoughtful if you hit a button and “send to friends” and maybe 30 or more people are receiving your same communiqué, or is it a touch lazy and even narcissistic?)

As a new week begins, let’s think about those we really care about and make an attempt to have a real exchange of thoughts and ideas. (This can be an unhurried phone call, writing an in depth one on one letter, or planning some fun “face time”) I’ll bet if we do, the feeling of “disconnect” will be replaced by a shared warmth created by the bond of truly communicating!

To Zen or Not to Zen - -

Creativity or Meditation?

Sometimes it’s in the eye of the beholder! I have spent (sporadically) many years of my life in creative pursuits. As life has brought many opportunities my way, my creative life has ebbed and flowed like an ocean with the tide.

First came raising children, which allows for a lot of creativity but very little meditation time. That was followed by years creating a new life and earning a living, which was interspersed with writing - - mainly poetry which I enjoy immensely, but I decided I needed a steady income more than following my muse.

Antiques and collectibles of all kinds has always been a passion of mine, and that led me to opening my own little store in California. This was fulfilling because finding a piece of furniture that has seen better days, and restoring it to beauty and value just felt good. Finding little treasures, and then finding them a new “home” was fun, and though I was extremely busy all the time, I was happy with the creative energy I was experiencing.

I started designing one of a kind jewelry to add to my store, and added a line of quartz crystal and precious stones. Designing jewelry and working with jewelry and natural stones gave me a time to contemplate colors and the “message” they hold to those that wear them, because each color has it’s own range of vibration and meaning. So too, working with crystals and other stones was an enlightening experience. Creation and meditation blend when working with colors and crystal energy, even when you are immersed in the design process!

Time passes and another move, another time, and now I am semi-retired. I have found a lovely new (to me) outlet for my creative side though, at Etsy.com.

My daughter introduced me to Etsy, and suggested opening an online shop together for handmade and vintage items (which we did in Feb. ‘09 ). It has been a lot of fun working together and watching this business build.

Because my partner and I have many interests outside those that my daughter and I share, we have opened another shop which is an outlet for our interests in Crystals, ethnic collectibles, carvings, and other handmade designs. (Opened in May,’09 ).

“Learning the ropes” and “stocking the shops” has been pretty time consuming, but along with that it has stimulated my creative side again, and while I am producing “product“, I’m having fun creating and re-learning many of the elements I have touched on before in my life, - - and as I create, I meditate. It brings me pleasure and inner peace - - who would have thought ? ?