Out of my Comfort Zone Again

It’s been a while since I’ve written any blogs, but I’ve been away on holiday for a while and, well, just busy with stuff.

While I was away I was taken out of my own personal comfort zone twice.  Both times I nearly backed out but then I remembered the saying by Neale Walsh “life begins at the end of your comfort zone”, so I took a deep breath and got on with it.

My first event was walking over this bamboo bridge in St Vincent.  I hate these sort of bridges, there are gaps in the floor, they look totally unsafe and the worse thing ever is that they swing and move when you walk on them; there is nothing stable to hold onto.  I had seen the bridge on the way in but a sign next to it said “temporarily out of use” – phew, I thought, I won’t have to do that.  Wrong!!  Turns out the bridge was perfectly safe and the sign was a joke for tourists.  Panic started to take hold and I thought I would just have to tell our guide I couldn’t do it.  But then the voice in my head said “are you sure you can’t do it?”.  Well of course I could do it, I just didn’t want to do it and I wouldn’t like doing it.  So I did it.

My second event was coming off a catamaran straight into the Caribbean Sea.  Now I can’t swim and, while water doesn’t particularly bother me, I don’t like being out of my depth – I panic.  I don’t trust floats and buoyancy aids of any kind and need to be able to keep my feet firmly on the bottom; that was not possible getting off the boat.  It was hot and humid, everyone else was going into the sea to cool off and I wanted to do it too.  One of the crew suggested I take a life vest but still I didn’t want to.  Then that voice again – “are you sure you can’t do it?”  Of course I could do it, I just didn't want to and I wouldn't like it because I would start to panic.  So I did it.

I felt so good after achieving both of these things.  Comfort zones are really personal and we cannot understand the fears and discomfort of others  - those who swim well will not understand how I panic when out of my depth; others will not understand how I feel on a rickety, swaying bridge that has gaps in the floor.  But those who do manage to move out of their comfort zones for a while will understand that moment of fear before you start, the constant feeling of nervousness whilst completing the task and then the feeling of complete euphoria when you have achieved.

It does us good to take on new challenges every once in a while.  It makes us realise that we are capable of much more than we think.  When we set our minds to it there is so much that we can achieve, we just need to take a deep breath and do it.  

I can’t say I will go out of my way looking for these kinds of experiences, but I hope I will not hesitate too long before accepting more challenges in the future.

Irritable Bowl Syndrome

Just have to share this one with you.

I suffer from Irritable Bowl Syndrome (there, I've now admitted that to the world!), it's not too bad but every now and again I get a flare-up and one of those flare-ups happened last night.

I started to get some stomach cramps during the evening and by the time I went off to bed they were becoming quite severe.  Usually, and I apologise for mentioning this, a trip to the bathroom will help to alleviate the pain.  It wasn't happening last night.

During the fourth trip to the bathroom I decided that I needed some help.  Now, I'm a Reiki Master but for some reason it just didn't occur to me to do some self-Reiki.  No, I went straight for the big guys and called Archangel Raphael to help me with the pain.

I call upon Raphael a lot when I'm giving Reiki to others, so I feel we have a fairly close relationship.  It seemed fairly natural to me to ask him for help when I needed it.

The pain started to subside so I left the bathroom and went back to bed.  The bedside clock was showing 11:11 - my sign that spirit and the angels are with me.  I settled down in bed and slept through the night - pain-free.

You see, your Angels and the Archangels are always ready and willing to help, but you do have to ask.

Thank you Archangel Raphael - I am truly grateful and do love you.

The Children's Clinic

As you may remember, Gill runs the monthly Bowen4Children Clinic for children with special needs and I pop along to give Reiki.  The Clinic is growing and we have two new volunteer therapists, giving both Bowens and Reiki.

This past Saturday we had our usual lovely clinic but I just want to tell you about our last child.  A beautiful 9-year-old boy dealing with many physical issues.  During his treatment I found myself projecting energy from my solar plexus and I shortly felt I was connecting with the boy on a deeper level.  Don’t look at my body, he told me, look deeper and you will find me.  Gosh – had I connected on a soul level?

Jackie, our other Reiki Therapist and also our Spiritual Sister, joined us and the three of us gave him Reiki.  It was powerful and I had never felt the energy as strong before.  The boy’s Mum came over and stood a few yards away, just watching.  I wanted her closer so called her to the bed and there we stood – Gill, Jackie and myself, enclosing both mother and child in our circle.  Our Reiki flowed into both of them and Jackie could see white light beaming down and filling the three of us – real light-workers!

It was an amazing few moments; we were all emotional, humbled and proud to be able to work in this way.

This is why I do what I do.  

Spiritual Development

Yesterday I did a Spiritual Development Workshop

It was one of three workshops, the beginners course – I wanted to go straight to the advanced level. 

I have never done a structured course before.  My knowledge has grown over many years of reading, talking to others and simply getting down and doing it for myself.  So I went back to basics - I started to build and grow energy, I projected my energy, I learnt to read the energy of others.  I did a bit of psychometry and we ended the day with some energy healing. 

All-in-all there wasn’t anything I hadn’t really done before, but it confirmed that everything I did all those years ago, through trial and error, was absolutely spot-on.  I did learn how to feel the energy a little differently, I learnt more on how spirit interacts with us, I learnt a few more ways to ground and protect myself.

A lovely teacher, completely without ego, she made the day fun, made sure that we all got involved, made us all work and ensured that we fully understood what we were doing.  I gained confidence and became aware that I am already connecting well and that the way I work is absolutely perfect for me.

Towards the end of the day I had a moment of clarity.  One of our students, a young girl who is just at the beginning of her spiritual journey and an Indigo if ever I saw one, had come to us at Como for a little help and guidance.  In that moment I realised that my purpose was to help start our Centre in order to help and guide the Indigo and Crystal children to fulfil their mission.  These young people are our future, our way forward, but they need to be guided and nurtured and they need to feel supported and loved in the work that they have to do.  I will help in every way I know how.

I am truly grateful.

Cosmic Ordering

On Saturday evening we had a talk at Como on Cosmic Ordering by the lovely Ellen Watts.  It was a fabulous evening.  Ellen was inspiring and humorous, she’s down to earth and engages totally with everyone.

Now I thought I knew a bit about Cosmic Ordering, indeed I am convinced that our Centre came about because of an order that both Gill and I placed.  But it seems there is more to this than just saying I would like so-and-so.

The first thing that came up was how our own limiting beliefs block us from receiving orders!  Imagine that – I didn’t think anything could block wanting and getting something, after all if you want something you want it!

But just think about it for a moment, how many of you want to win the lottery?  But how many believe that you actually will?  How many of you believe that you’re not worthy of having success, think you’re being greedy if you ask for too much, believe you have to work hard to earn money, that there’s no such thing as a free lunch?  And so the list goes on.  I certainly have all of those beliefs, and many more.  We are brought up to believe these things by our parents and society and they can and do hold us back from realising our dreams and ambitions.

So the first job is to get rid of those beliefs.  I am working on them - I am worthy of receiving what I want in life.

The second part to Cosmic Ordering is to be specific about what you want.  Write down what you really want, be as specific as possible and add a deadline.

The third part is to add “for the good of all concerned” at the end of every order placed.  You don’t want to receive something at the misfortune of others.

Finally, be open to receive your order.  Don’t think for a minute that it will be as easy as being delivered to your door by DHL – you may have to put a little effort in.

So with all that in mind, off I went to place my orders.  I didn’t want to be too greedy (limiting belief there already) so only placed a couple.  By Tuesday nothing had arrived, which was going a long way to confirming another limiting belief - it wouldn’t happen for me.  We discussed it Tuesday night at Meditation and agreed that I probably wasn’t being specific enough.  So I revised my order, being totally specific about what I wanted to happen and adding a deadline of 5pm the following day.

The following afternoon I was feeling no nearer to getting my order, when I had the overwhelming feeling that I had to make a phone call.  I made the call and within 15-minutes my order had been completed.  I had to put some effort in and when I did I got what I wanted.

I don’t usually recommend books here, but I am going make an exception - “Cosmic Ordering Made Easier” by Ellen Watts.  It’s available on her website and Amazon and is a fantastic book to get you started placing orders.

I have other orders placed – just waiting for them to be delivered.

Pain Control

I want to share someone’s story with you.  I have her permission to do so, but will call her Ann.

Ann joined our Meditation Course 6-weeks ago.  Suffering from chronic pain and debilitating headaches, she decided to give meditation a try – almost as a last resort.  She came into the room almost pain-free but as we started our first 5-minute meditation, focussing on the breath, Ann was on the verge of a panic attack and severe pain kicked in. 

I asked her if she would like to go home but she said she wanted to give it another go, so we started our second meditation.  This time was a little better – no panic attack, but the pain remained.  Still determined to continue we went into the final, guided, meditation of the evening and Ann felt the intensity of her pain fade a little.  As she left she said she would be back the following week.

I was at a bit of a loss – I had never had anyone come into a course pain-free but leave with pain.  I decided that, if there was no improvement the following week, I would talk it over with my own meditation teacher, Mary Pearson, at the British School of Meditation.

Ann was back the following week and started the session with slight pain.  During the first meditation she felt the pain ebb and flow; the pain lessened with the second meditation.  Our third meditation, The Hot Air Balloon, was our breakthrough.  Ann loaded all her pain, plus some other problems and anxieties, into the basket and cut the ropes.  As she watched the hot air balloon float away, so did her pain.  Ann had found a way to start to gain control.

The improvement continued over the following weeks; with each new meditation Ann was beginning to feel more in control and her pain lessened.

Last night was the end of the course and I am delighted that Ann is now only suffering pain about once a week - an enormous improvement.  Ann is hopeful that her headaches will continue to reduce in both frequency and severity.

Through meditation Ann has learnt that she is in control and now has a valuable tool at her disposal.  She continues to meditate daily, and uses meditation whenever her pain becomes too severe. 

Needless to say, I am absolutely delighted for Ann.

More Snow

This weekend the UK is covered in yet another blanket of snow.  In the south, where I live, it’s not been too bad but the people in the north of England are really suffering.  At least one person has lost their life and thousands of homes are without power.  Many roads are impassable and many villages cut-off and running low on food.  By day the snow is starting to melt, but the icy temperatures at night cause wide-spread freezing and the roads will be treacherous during the rush-hour on Monday morning.  Of course, when the thaw starts in earnest we’ll endure lots of flooding.

Now I am well aware that this kind of weather is fairly run-of-the-mill in other countries, but here in the UK we are just not equipped to deal with it.  Any kind of adverse weather and the country grinds to a halt.

What does happen, though, is that in adversity people tend to stick together.  They share, take strangers into their homes, provide comfort and help to ease the suffering of their fellow man.  Not everyone is like this of course – there will always be the minority who are out for themselves, but thankfully they do tend to be the minority.  Random acts of kindness are being carried out all over the country at the moment.

But it does make me wonder why it takes adverse conditions and natural disasters to bring out the humanity in people.  What is so difficult about helping others every day of our lives?  We only have to open our eyes to see those worse off than ourselves, whether in our own countries or elsewhere in the world.  We are all one, all from the same source, living in the same world and in the same universe.  Life doesn’t have to be this tough – we can reach out through love and kindness and help make everyone’s life a little easier.

When will people wake up?