Angels Walk Among Us

Throughout my lifetime, I have been blessed. I know this and I don’t take it for granted. In fact, I want to celebrate it so that you can see it in your lives too! Because when we see with a grateful heart, we understand that we are never alone. God sends us angels in all different forms to help us along the way. Strangers who become friends. People who go out of their way for others whom they don’t know. Information and synchronicities that come out of nowhere that are the key to unlocking certain situations. Wisdom that’s shared simply because it will help someone else. Do you see what I mean?

These human angels walk among us. Have you ever wondered how you got the right person on the phone when you were trying to fix something? Or noticed a stranger in line at the grocery store doing something so kind and it makes your day? Have you ever been nudged to reach out to someone to help them? Why, that’s God’s way of expanding his angelic kindness through us!

If you’re not a believer in God, but perhaps in Mother Nature’s infinite wisdom or the Universal Laws or something else, I feel as if it is all similar when we connect with kindness with others. Can you feel it?

Since the start of this next chapter with my heart, I have met so many angels along the way that it’s been amazing. The Divine Timing of our meet cutes has been extraordinary. But I know (big inner smile) that there’s a soul plan here at work. It’s not by chance most likely. It’s got more of an angelic feel to it and I am relishing in all of it.

For when we are grateful, when we acknowledge the blessings, we open our hearts/minds/souls to more of the same. When we receive with grace, we can also give out and flow with the loving energies that are so healing.

Not just now, but throughout my life, angelic humans have made their presence known to me, helping me when needed in extraordinary ways. My sister and I have had many of these experiences and we are so grateful to continue to have them. We marvel at each encounter which solidifies our thinking.

So I hope that if you are nudged to get out of your comfort zone to connect with someone else that you will not hesitate. Sometimes we are the catalyst for joyfully changing someone else’s life and that’s the best feeling ever! For those of you, who like me, have been the recipient, let’s continue to pass it along, spreading kindness and love with each personal encounter.

Our world aches to grow in love so let’s feed it! Keep shining your heartlights for we can see them!

Shine On!

xo

Past Experiences Do Not Dictate The Outcome Of The Present One

When similar situations repeat themselves, sometimes we can go into a mind spasm.  We relive the past in the present situation, mindlessly worrying that the outcome of the present situation could be the same as the ending of the past one.  I know I’m writing generally here because frankly, the situation could be anything that you’ve endured.

But there’s that trigger, that Oh my gosh! realization that we’ve passed this way before in the past.  I tried to put it out of my reasoning mind, knowing that as before, I am doing the best I can with the resources I have.  But there’s that little worrisome thought that this time may repeat the last one’s ending.  Mindful of not wanting the same results, I pushed away the thoughts, trying to reason my way out of not manifesting the past again.  Because I don’t want what happened in the past to repeat itself.  Yet, I couldn’t shake the fear.

So I rechecked the facts, because my need for control, especially now, is fierce.  All seems well at this time which is good.  But in talking with a kind friend, I realized I was beating myself up internally for feeling as if the past could repeat itself and I was helpless to change what may be the outcome again this time.

When she parroted the situation back to me, as I listened to my own situation but in her voice (as if she were me), compassion filled my heart and I cried.  I realized that I needed to have compassion for myself and for my own feelings in this situation.  I understood that pushing off the absurdity of the situation repeating the past with the same ending wasn’t a ludicrous thought that I had to push away.  I understood that it was a natural thought process that if all lined up as it had previously (which is certainly possible), the ending could be the same.  I struggled with the thought, talking back and forth with my friend as we processed the scenario.  When we were finished talking, I realized what I already knew.  I can only do my best with my own resources and it’s in God’s hands.

I have to be content with that knowledge and find peace within me.  Because at this point, the situation is stable and not showing signs of further chaos, but the threat is real.  It’s just a question of if it’s here or not.

I think perhaps PTSD may be in varying degrees something that we endure over a lifetime when repeated similar situations occur.  Fear and past knowledge often make it difficult when we feel helpless.  So how do we overcome those aching worries?

We need to find compassion for ourselves for even going to that dark place of fear instead of tamping it down and turning away from it.  When I exposed the fear to the light with the help of my trusted friend, I cried and released some of the traumatic fear I was holding for the present situation.  With the tearful release, I was able to ground myself again in the knowledge that I am doing the best I can and only time will tell the actual results.  That gave me a small dose of peace for which I’m ever grateful.

Finding peace is precious and priceless as we endure stressful situations.  We all experience life lessons in different ways.  What I’ve found is that in being love, sending love, and wrapping us all in love, we know that love shines our heartlights into the darkness of fear based thoughts.

I’m not bringing that fear into my thoughts anymore.  I know I can flow with whatever may be on my path as long as I continue to stand in the light and not in the darkness.  Please keep shining your heartlights dear friends!  I can see them and they give me great comfort!

Shine On!

xo

The Gifts In Surrendering

Sounds like a strange title for a blog post, huh?  Well, I guess it is, but a comment from this post made me feel like I wanted to write more about surrendering.

To surrender is to allow the Universe to have a hand in life.  Surrender isn’t a negative as many of us deem it when we hear the word.  Surrender is simply presence during whatever chaos surrounds us.  It’s not picking up the karma of chaos, but simply allowing it to swirl around us while we stay peaceful, centered and present.

Surrender isn’t allowing the past to whip our emotions up into a frenzy of negativity, of hurt, or of resentment.  It isn’t allowing the good of the past to be lost, but instead to hold it tenderly in a place of peace.  It isn’t allowing the loss of the good to overshadow the present good with bereftness or grief.  It is being in the present moment, truly being in the present moment with peace – no past – no future – just now.

And if that sounds hard to do, well, by golly, you’re right!  (Sorry, I needed a giggle to break the seriousness.)  Because many times it’s not easy, otherwise we’d all be doing it and be like Eckhart Tolle or the Dalai Lama without straining to stay present.

Surrender isn’t giving up or giving in or allowing others to control you.  It isn’t being a doormat or losing the battle.

Surrender is breathing in the gratitude for what we currently have at this very moment and acknowledging it.  Surrender is faith in integrity.  Faith in ourselves.  Faith in the Universe that all arrives with Divine Timing.  Surrender is letting go and letting God.  Surrender is putting the desired outcome out there and taking the baby steps that we can in order to accomplish whatever it is we want without putting restrictions, nor past or future limitations on ourselves and our situation.  It’s stillness and prayer.  It’s a loosely built plan of what we’d like ultimately, but with the caveat that somewhere close in that vicinity would be fine as well.  It’s allowing the Law of Attraction, the angels that are friends and strangers or maybe, actually angels, to help us.  It’s continuing to do our best daily, with integrity and lay our worries on the bedpost as we sleep in peaceful slumber, knowing we have done our best today and have earned a restful sleep.  Surrender is  allowing the freedom of peace to envelope our souls.  To find the peace in the current situation, no matter how bleak it seems and to remember that tomorrow is another day with a new dawn and the possibilities of miracles abound.  It’s reaching out to others when times get tough, for more often than not, they are waiting in the wings to comfort, to help and to encourage.

It’s finding The Presents of Presence, unwrapping the peace and being grateful for what is in this very moment.  It’s finding the good now.

Have you every surrendered?  What was the outcome?

Shine On!

xo

Bird’s Nest – Is It A Sign?

I was sitting outside the other morning as I often do, enjoying the peace and quiet of Mother’s Nature’s gifts before the hubbub of the day begins.  From across the yard, I saw something drop and I heard a thud as it landed on the ground.  Immediately, I thought a squirrel might have fallen out of the tree as I could see that what had fallen wasn’t moving.  I contemplated going to look as I watched a squirrel race by, stopping only for a moment by the unknown object and continuing on his way.  Curiously I went over to see for myself what had fallen with a thud.

It was the nest pictured above which had fallen with an audible thud.  No eggs to be seen, yet the weight of it as it had somehow gotten dislodged from its branch!  Coincidentally two days before, I had 2 little birds trying to build a nest in my dryer vent!  For days we battled.  They would stuff the vent and I would unstuff it.  Finally they gave up and moved to a different place.  Whew.  I didn’t want to cook the eggs with the dryer heat!  I didn’t want that on my conscience.  Not to mention the fire hazard!

As you may know, I’m looking for a house to move to as the closing sale date of our home creeps closer.  I wonder what it means to have the nest fall or to have birds trying to nest in my home?

I’m praying for the perfect home to come to us as the time edges closer, but so far, nothing definitive has appeared.  I keep thinking that God is never too late so I continue to let go and Let God.  But whew, it’s hard when worry plagues me and because I’m a planner, letting go of control and trying to find one when none are available are at odds in my head.

Any thoughts on my situation?  What do you think of the nest falling in front of me?  Or the birds trying to build a nest in the dryer vent?  Are they signs?  What do you think it means?

Shine On!

xo

How To Find Your Way Home – Prayer Request

If light is in your heart,

you will find your way home.

~ Rumi

My heart is filled with light as I release our family home with gratitude for the happiness and blessings it gave us for many years.  I humbly ask that if you feel led, that you please send prayers for a new home in which my children and I can rest our weary souls, shine our heartlights and be happy.  I know we will find our new place with our faith of Divine timing, but a few extra prayers from you would surely help our situation.

Thank you for reading and for thinking of us.  As always, I appreciate our connections.

Shine On!

xo

Before You Can “Let Go and Let God”

you have to let Him in!”

Such simple advice for a Sunday, don’t you think?  Traditionally Sunday is a day of rest from the week’s work and a day designed to relax, to enjoy and to be aware that life is good.  It is a day for family, for enjoyment and for pleasure.

Take some time today to pray, to meditate, and to enjoy stillness with gratitude.  If you can, walk outside to experience the gifts Mother Nature brings every single day.  Look up to the sky, notice the clouds, the stars, the sun and the moon.  If it’s raining, feel the raindrops and the gratitude for the water which feeds all life.  Be grateful for the blessings in your life, even the tiniest ones like waking up this morning!  When we begin to notice even the littlest blessings, more blessings come to us because we are concentrating on that which we have and not what we feel we lack.

Letting go and letting God is scary for many of us have that sense of wanting to be in control and believing we can make things happen simply by actions or wishing or even saying affirmations and imagining what we want to come to us.  By all means, use whatever you find comfort in, but don’t forget about God.  Pray for what is yours by Divine Right.  What is yours, comes to you with perfect timing.  We can’t rush what is to be.  We can only allow what we have now to flourish, to do our best in all that we do and trust that the Universe and God will provide.  Just like the birds who find food even in the scarcest of winters, God provides for us.  We just have to let Him in and allow Him to help us by trusting Him.

Don’t lose faith when what you wish for doesn’t come to fruition.  It’s not meant to be.  As they say, you can’t push the river, but you can go with the flow.  Continue with your actions, but be mindful and watch for signs from Above.  Ask if you are on the right path and know when there’s a detour, it’s probably meant to be.

I write for you and for myself as reminders.  I am guilty of trying to push the river, to plan ahead and to take action for what I want and sometimes it all backfires.  Then I begin again because I feel as if I need to be in control.  But it’s laughable at times since control is an illusion.

When we let God in, we allow miraculous healing to occur.  We allow blessings to expand and we allow gifts to be experienced.  We are each blessed.  Be thankful.

Shine On!

xo

 

 

Daily Prompt: Simply the Best

That’s me, here in the tundra of the USA!

When do your best ideas come?  Mine mostly come at night.  For example, the name of my blog, The Presents of Presence came to me around 4am on one of those famous sleepless nights.  It just popped into my brain, almost like I heard it and I just knew in my heart that it was Misifusa’s Blog’s new additional name.  I get many of those a-ha moments in the middle of the night like that.  Things just come to me, unbidden and I then pursue them when dawn arrives.

But there are moments during those early morning hours, before the family is awake and stirring, when only Tiffy Cat and I are up, that my blog posts write themselves.  Ok, I admit it.  Does that make sense or are you now thinking that I’m totally batty?  Does this ever happen to you ~ that you find something that very morning which sparks a post or that triggers a creativity stream of words that feels endless?  My fingers whisk along the keyboard at breakneck speed in order to capture the words flowing through my mind at 100 miles an hour.  I think they happen to me this way because I am relaxed, I am open and I am receptive.

Those are the posts, the writings, the comments, the drafts that I find most appealing for I know that Source/God/Infinite Spirit have blessed me with help that day and for that, I am eternally grateful.

I’m curious, when is your best time?

Shine On!

xo

Daily Prompt: Simply the Best

When and where do you do your best thinking? In the bathroom? While running? Just before bed, or first thing in the morning? On the bus? Why do you think that is?

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2014/01/06/daily-prompt-best/

Laugh, Love and Be Grateful

Lately I find that perhaps because it’s November and the start of the holiday season that I stop periodically throughout the day to just breathe for a moment and to be grateful.  Do you ever take a moment to simply breathe and count your blessings?  It’s not exactly a meditation for you may remember how I fared with Deepak and Oprah awhile back.  Click here!  A full-sitdown meditation session even if it’s only for 20 minutes is still too much for me to handle.  But these itty bitty snapshots of gratitude have been lifesavers lately.  I feel a bit more grounded.  I feel a release of stress and I feel a relaxation and almost like I”m dropping my troubles at the door again. Remember the Trouble Tree?  Click here!

Every morning my son and I walk to his bus.  It’s early and the world is quiet ~ such a magical time for us both!  It’s our together time, before the hustle and bustle of our days begin and I treasure it with all of my heart.  We look up at the sky, notice nature and enjoy each other’s company for a few precious minutes each morning.  Even bundled up against the wind, the rain and the cold weather, I wouldn’t change a thing because as we walk, we talk, we notice the sky, the leaves, the trees and all the bounties that Mother Nature provides.  Sometimes I am even gifted with linking arms with him as we walk (especially when it’s cold out and oh, how I love the cold or the rain for just that reason!).  I sip my coffee as we wait and chat.  Some mornings we share a laugh, sometimes we are simply quiet.  But I always feel we are surrounded by love.  He’s a teenager, but such a loving, typical teenage boy ~ I love his spirit, his kindness and he’s growing up to be a good man.  He’s not a Mama’s boy ~ far from it ~ but he’s a caring, kind and good person who keeps his teenager-ness with all its bells and whistles intact.  But it’s in these mornings, that I see the man he is growing to be and I”m proud to say he’s my son.  And as I walk back down the silent street after the bus has come to take him to school, I notice all the graciousness in my life.  I give thanks for the gifts of the day, I send up my silent please for whatever I may need and I imagine that red carpet ahead, leading me and my family on the path of our highest good.  I bless the world we have made and I look joyfully towards my day.

`Tis the season to be grateful, to appreciate and to expand the blessings that we have been given.  Look around.  Who needs a smile from you?  Who needs a hug?  Who needs a few extra moments in your day?  You have plenty of all ~ why not share?  You know that what you focus on expands, what you give out you receive one hundred fold back in return and what you give out you get!

Since we know all of those little ditties (and surely there are more so please comment with them) then why don’t we make it a daily practice?  Just take a few moments everyday to stop, to be breathe, to be grateful, to count our blessings and to smile.  Imagine how much sweeter the world would be if we could all do this everyday?!

Want to join me? 

Shine On!

xo

Seasons Change, Life Changes, You Change…

Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.

Nature’s peace will flow into you just as sunshine flows into trees.

The winds will blow their own freshness into you… while cares will drop off like leaves.

Well my friends, it’s almost the end of summer and I am hanging on to its vestiges with every fiber of my being.  I know most of us are already thinking in terms of fall since school has started but alas, the Fall Equinox officially begins on in the Northern Hemisphere on September 22, 10:49 A.M. EDT.   The word equinox comes from the Latin words for “equal night.” The fall and spring equinoxes are the only days of the year in which the Sun crosses the celestial equator.   From here on out, the temperatures begin to drop and the days start to get shorter than the nights.

My Dad passed away on June 21st which was the first day of summer which was his favorite season so I guess moving into fall would be just another first to add to our collection.  We’ve endured my parents’ first wedding anniversary without my Dad, my nephew’s & brother-in-law’s birthdays, my husband’s and my wedding anniversary, the first day back to school went by without his traditional call to ask how the day went and various holidays ~ July 4th, Labor Day have already been celebrated without his earthly presence.

I guess that’s where this all ties in together for seasons change…life changes…we are born, we live, we die…and then…?  I won’t go into what happens next, because I am concentrating on the NOW…the PRESENT that we’ve been given.

My suggestion to you is to video tape your loved ones talking about something special…get their voices on tape…take pictures now while life is good because we only have today…we only have my Dad’s voice on the answering machines since he was always calling us.  I am grateful that I kept his last few messages.  My sister took a video of him when he was first put in the hospital, before he started to really go further downhill and it is one that I am ever grateful for because he sent me a message ~ one that I’ll forever cherish.

Which brings me to my passion ~ sending out love.  What’s the legacy you’re leaving behind?  If today was your last day, would your loved ones know how you feel?  Would there be kind words left unsaid?  I used to keep cards from my family that said something very special ~ you know, that note that said how proud of you they were and how much you are loved…those kinds…now I keep the last card sent from others because I’ve now found first hand how much it means to see a loved ones handwriting especially when it says something good.  You see, we all need to feel loved and to feel special.  An unexpected card in the mail, amidst the junk and bills, is a smile giver ~ telling someone now how you feel is a sure-fire way to not feel that there are words left unsaid.  Sending a card with your heartfelt words gives a concrete, hand-held reminder of how you feel ~ one that will be cherished.  And with SendOutCards you can even write it in your own handwriting, but from the comfort of your computer, in your pjs without leaving home!

Do you have 10 minutes and $1?  Of course you do…now use it…be the change you want to see in your life, in your relationships…you can’t change others, but you most certainly can change yourself!

Don’t FALL back into the routine which you’ve know for years…

branch out, let your cares fall like the leaves

and blow the freshness of a new season into your life and into the lives of others!

I’ll help by getting you started…

www.sendoutcards.com/126830

xo

Calling 9/11 for Presents of Presence

Like many other bloggers, I find blogging on this day hard to ignore.  The great sadness that envelopes most of us on this day every year continues to be marked by the many tributes around our country to those who lost their lives 11 years ago today.  I won’t reiterate the great tragedy that fell so many lives in such a violent way, but instead I want to concentrate on today…the Present.

If we’ve learned anything at all, I believe it’s that there are no guarantees in this life.  We can be good people, kiss our families goodbye on a Tuesday morning, on our way to work notice the clear blue sky and the crisp cool air of Fall and without warning, succumb to a tragedy that still haunts our country 11 years later.

We only have the PRESENT…this moment in time is the only sure thing we have.  Being PRESENT in the PRESENT moment is a gift that many of us forget to enjoy on a daily basis.  We rush about with all the frenetic energy of mindlessness, of routine, of the shoulda, woulda and coulda’s that call out to our souls and we forget to stop and smell the roses because we are bombarded with all of the outside forces.

My cancer diagnosis on New Year’s Eve of 2001 was on the heels of the 9/11 tragedy and to me, personally, it was catastrophic as it changed my whole life.  It has made me over the years realize that when I am in that frenetic energy, I am missing out on the Presents of Presence.  I can be living a good life, following all the rules, working hard, doing what I’m supposed to do, getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of juggling all of my chosen roles in life and still, I can be hit with a reality that rocks my world to its very core and I will have to fight to survive.

Now almost 11 years later, I find that that frenetic energy returns without warning when I’m not vigilant about carving out my Presence time.  When I moderate my soul’s being with feeding her gratitude, love, blessings and hope, I feel renewed again and my energy changes from frenzy to peacefulness.  I find that when I give my troubles, my worries, my fast-paced frenzy to the Universe/God/Spirit, casting the burdens that weigh me down, I am free to help others, to be of service, to increase my inner tank of peace and improve my life and the lives of those with whom I’m in contact.

Sometimes you have to CALL 911 and ask for help when you need it.  You need to look up in faith, in love, in knowing that the time you take to enjoy this present moment is a gift that you are enjoying because you are blessed with the knowledge that:

Yesterday is the Past,

Tomorrow is the Future,

Today is a Gift

That’s why we call it the PRESENT.

Enjoy the Presents of Presence.

God Bless You!

xo