Our wonder-filled vacation starts next week. We’ll spend time in three different states riding at least 100 roller coasters. We are going to a new park this time – Cedarpoint in Sandusky, Ohio! This is THE roller coaster capital of the world.

We will also head to Six Flags Great America just north of Chicago, spend some time in Chi Town in the art-museum district and take in the various sites we enjoy. We’ll stop by St. Louis to visit Six Flags there, too.

As I look at how tall Chance is growing – he’s 10 and 5 foot 4, and his foot is the size of my size 9 women’s shoe – I realize these days may not last forever. So, I will go and scream as we go up and down the roller coasters and enjoy these days, my boys and life.

I’ve taken some much needed time off after the push to complete my dissertation. I thank all of you for your kind words and notes of encouragement. I’ll be back in September… just in time for back to school.

Big hug… and lots of love.

Tina

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A few months ago, I went to see Ellany, my friend and gal pal, because we planned to go get ‘makeovers.’

I can’t remember the specifics of how the comment came up when Ellany said, “I see you. When you have your make-up on, and are dressed in your girly shoes and dresses, I know that’s you. It’s SO you.”

There’s something about your truth that grabs you in the throat and heart and gut all at the same time. I blinked many times quickly so that I wouldn’t let the tears rushing from my throat to escape. I wondered, ‘Why does this touch me so deeply?’

I thought about that moment many times in the following weeks, wondering what it was that she could see and others haven’t. It reminded me of something Sonia Choquette said in one of the workshops I attended with her many years ago…I see you is the highest form of love. The truth is…I felt loved in that moment…to the depths of my soul.

It’s so easy for us to ‘see’ people’s flaws, their insecurities, their foibles, their mistakes and, sadly, I believe most people think this IS people’s truth – who they are. I know, FOR SURE, it isn’t. I have not met one person yet who doesn’t have a brimming, brightly-lit soul full of beauty and love. When we focus on people’s ‘ick,’ we energize it. When we focus on their truth, we energize it. What cuts to the negative, can just as easily cut to the positive. To see the love a person is – deep inside…that takes seeing with your heart. Looking with loving eyes.

I remember when I wrote my second book, I had many people telling me that I wasn’t this or wasn’t that. My agent at the time said I was “serious,” not whimsical and child-like like my book. She said my book was too “playful” and wasn’t “serious” enough. At the time, I was struggling to determine exactly who I was. I had been so good at being whatever I needed to be in any moment, the “me” that I am got lost along the way. My agent’s pressing words forced me to look to see what was real – what a gift!

I thought to myself, ‘Well, I can be TOO serious, but my heart, my spirit is playful. This is as “me” as it gets! I am the QUEEN OF POSSIBILITIES!!! It takes a childlike viewpoint of ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE to show up like this!’  I realized, too, that she identified with my business consultant side, which, in our experience together, had been dead serious, because her situation had required it…I showed up in the energy of ‘let’s MOVE’ because that is what the situation called for – dead serious, every moment counts, we must turn this ship around NOW!

The truth is, we all have EVERYTHING inside of us. Every facet, every aspect is waiting for us to express it, as needed. Our ‘expression’ is a blend of those facets we access most often. My entire inner (and outer) life is playing a game. If I shared how many games I have created for myself since I was a little girl, you would see that, to me, life is a big game to play. I make up games to get projects done. I make up games to clean the house. I even teach my inner games to others who just might like to play this way, too. And, just like playing a board game, the gamut of emotions are there too…serious, playful, competitive, concerned and more.

Anyone who knows me knows that I laugh a LOT…and bring a playfulness to serious things such as depression, being stuck, fear and the gamut of other human emotions we encounter along the way. I have lightened up along the way as I have discovered the game isn’t dead-serious. Do I act like I’m at the circus each day? No way – I’m playful, not a clown. One of the things I’m known for is bringing a “you can do this” attitude everywhere I go. However, I can bring a fire starter if people want it. I can bring an edge, too; however, it isn’t my preferred energy. I enjoy being laid-back, on-point and playful. Why do we need to be so SERIOUS all of the time??? Can’t we just do what we love and love the experience, including those we are serving?

That day, in the reflection of Ellany’s eyes and words, I felt that she saw me… my spirit… my truth. And, that is about as good as life gets. Pure magic! Thank you, Ellany!

Tigers…playful and yet dead-serious!

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Mark often says, “I love you.” I remember when we first met, it felt like it was SO often. As he must say it 20 times a day! He hasn’t changed in 11 years. Every day, he says, “Good morning, beautiful.” And I can feel it when he says it that he means it.

I’m not sure when he added another little adoration, but one day he looked over at me and said, “Marry me.” My response, like so many times in the past, was not quite as romantic as the affection oozing out of him. I said, “I already married you!”

He continued on, every so often, sprinkling in a “Marry me” and soon I had caught the spirit and said, “Okay! Yes!”

A few of my friends have gone through a divorce recently, and it has given me a chance to think about my own divorce from my first husband. I was SO happy to be out of a marriage that didn’t serve either one of us. I remember feeling ‘set free’ and ‘out of prison.’ The marriage was mostly my own fault as I had manipulated my way into my ex-husband’s heart, and while I didn’t feel ‘fireworks,’ we seemed to be good friends and that seemed like it could be enough. Boy, have I learned a LOT since I was 18! I remember our love life fizzling by the second year and believing that all marriages are probably the same. I saw it with some friends, and I had seen it in other families, too.

When Mark and I met, I felt like I had known him my entire life. We finished each other’s sentences and genuinely had so much fun together. Our love life was flaming hot, and he certainly seemed “too good to be true,” which I told him on more than one occasion. He said to me the second day we met, “What are you so afraid of?” And I honestly answered, “I’m afraid you will change.” He promised me that night, “I’m me. I’m only me, that’s all I know how to be.”

True to his word, he’s the same guy he was when we met – self-assured, self-confident, determined, loving, wickedly funny and sweet.

About five years ago, we attended a retreat just outside Helena, Montana. We are not vegetarians, and so by the second day we were craving something else to eat. We asked a guy from the retreat to take us into town where we rented a car and would go to town for our meals. One afternoon, we were running late to get back. We parked the car and like two little kids, shot off down the mountainside toward the main retreat house giggling and laughing. A woman caught a picture of us, and though I’m not sure what she saw, I can imagine, that the energy we exuded was vibrant and alive. She told us later, “You two give me hope that one day I will find love.” I felt grateful for her eyes to see ‘us’ in that moment.

And, thank goodness, I was soooo wrong about love fading over time and love lives losing their spark after years of marriage. Our marriage is stronger for all we’ve been through, and I often find myself laughing to the point of tears over something he has said, and then feeling so grateful for trusting him that second night.

The other day, as I drove down the road, this song (see video below) came on the radio. As I reflected on all that I’m sharing here, I felt a woosh in my heart while tears filled my eyes and a laugh gurgled out of my constricted throat. I don’t know another man on this planet that is a better match for me…I can’t even fathom it. Mark and I are so similar, and yet just different enough to keep life interesting. For that, and so much more, I’m grateful.

About 20 years ago, I received a phone call from my grandmother. She had been in a drunk driving accident, and although she was not hurt, she was very scared.

When I arrived at my grandmother’s apartment, I found her sitting on her couch looking three shades of white. She looked like a little child sitting there, and I could not imagine what she would say to me when I asked her what happened.

The accident took place over on the north side of Fort Worth off of an old highway that used to serve as a main artery for the city. I knew exactly where the accident took place because I had taken my driver’s test over there, and nearly failed it because of the two lane street that opens up to a four-lane highway confused me. I didn’t know ‘where’ to drive or which ‘lane’ went where. The four lane empties into a little two-lane street that drops down at a nearly 90 degree angle. When you point your car down that road, you literally can only see the trees above you as you descend down the road.

My grandmother was on that narrow two-lane street driving home late one night when her car veered into oncoming traffic. She had just closed my great-aunt’s bar, had had a few drinks herself and was headed home when she struck a car head-on while diving to grab her cigarette that had fallen into the floorboard.

Wow, can you imagine?

Her Chevy Caprice was totaled. My grandmother told me of a wonderful black woman who had been driving the other car. She was a ‘big’ black woman with a heavy Cadillac, and she was unhurt. “She was only worried about me…was I alright?” my grandmother said. “She cared more about me than she did about her car that was wrecked – even herself!”

My grandmother had been extremely racist her entire life. In that moment, I knew she had let it all go. My mother was not at all racist, and extremely tolerant and forgiving. My brother is half-Spanish and I am half-Native American. My grandmother had been so racist, so intolerant of our fathers. And, in that instant, not only was she healed, but so were we.

I had never seen my grandmother afraid until that day. She was terrified of what was going to happen to her. She had always done what she was supposed to – paid her taxes, followed the rules; this was beyond her rulebook.

I have written about my ex-brother-in-law who was an alcoholic, and it was his attorney that took very good care of my grandmother and kept her out of jail at 70 something years old. The black woman never pressed charges, and I can only imagine the number of angels that would create a healing scene like this.

My grandmother never drank again. After a life of cigs, beer and booze, she walked away from the alcohol and the cigarettes weren’t too far behind when her mind gave way to Alzheimer’s and she literally forgot she smoked!

Sometimes when things happen we like to tell stories, blame people, blame ourselves, and sometimes all that is needed is to receive the gifts and to say thank you.

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I sent Dusty Rose, a.k.a. mom, a mother’s day card this year telling her how THANKFUL I am that she was my mother. She was a young mother, having me at 19 and my brother at 22 (just before her 23rd birthday). She didn’t impose a lot of rules on me, my sense is that it wouldn’t have mattered if she did, I would have just ignored them or broken them. She let me run wild and free. As a kid, I tromped around in the jungles and as a teenager, I put thousands of miles on my car exploring every back road and route from Aledo to Dallas, Texas.

When I was a kid, I took her allowing me to roam free as a sign of not caring about me…not caring if I got hurt or was injured. One day, while we still lived in Guam, I said, “There are wild boar out there! You know there are wild boar out there, and still you let us tromp around in the jungle looking for papayas!” When I was a teenager, I didn’t have a curfew, I could stay out as late as I wanted, sometimes I did – strolling home around 5 in the morning.

I vacillated between living with my mother and living with my grandmother throughout my life. My grandmother imposed rules and standards on how I would live with her and what I could and couldn’t do. I felt loved in these boundaries and I felt she cared. By contrast, I felt my mom didn’t care. Between the two, I got the love I truly needed – freedom AND boundaries.

I wrote to mom this mother’s day and thanked her for allowing the freedom to find out who I am and to roam like the free bird I am. She wrote back and told me: “I think we need to give your grandmother a lot of the credit here. Had she not been so controlling of me, I wouldn’t have been determined to NOT do the same thing to you.”

One of the things that happens along the road to accessing the soul’s path is ‘coming home’ to our family of origin. This is part of accepting all that we are and integrating into wholeness. I see now that ‘love’ to my mother is what she always wanted – freedom. She wanted to love me by giving me the freedom she never had. My grandmother had been such a controlling force in all of our lives…often stepping into our family unit, and she wanted to give me the freedom to be the mother I am, and to not impose her opinions and ideas onto me as well.

Today, I am grateful for both my mother and my grandmother’s influence. I see that I am a mix of both of their influences. Chance has a lot of freedom, but within boundaries Mark and I have set for him, for instance. We are all free birds, rule breakers, boundary pushers, and our family life reflects this. Because of our family make-up and design, we have the freedom to express ourselves in this way – Chance, included.

If you are awakening to your soul’s truth and find yourself drawn back into your family of origin, look for the highest truth and, there, you will find yourself.

Speaking of Dusty Rose, she is planning on having a Christmas in July party. She said she was going to go ahead and leave her Christmas decorations out on the porch until July and then just do Christmas in July! I love her style of decorating…it’s true… you can always find the road home.

Mom’s style is what you would call ‘rustic’ or ‘primitive’ and I love the vintage look. All of these ornaments are ‘vintage’ or as mom says, ‘old as dirt.’

Those Santas and ornaments were made like 30 years ago by my mom (and grandma, I think)!

Isn’t this crown the cutest little tree topper? It’s a candle wreath!

Close-up of vintage ornaments and mom’s “adopted tree” she confiscated from someone about to pitch it in the garbage. Is there any reason why I am so thrifty and crafty clever, too? I once wanted a queen sized bed for our guest bedroom (when I was married to my ex-husband). At the time, I made very little money, and so did my husband. I woke up a couple of days later and saw a wood frame sitting by the side of the road in the garbage pick up. I stopped on my way to work and hauled it home. It ended up being solid oak! It looked like a shorter version of a four-poster bed. The next week, a friend at work announced she was getting rid of her queen sized mattress. I claimed that, and hauled it home, too. Within a week, I had the guest bedroom set up just the way I wanted it!

My mom and stepdad make all kinds of birdhouses. Here, she put together a collage of three of them with some vintage canning jar candle holders.

We like to add ‘lights’ to everything! A little sparkle adds a bit of magic to everything!

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When I am out and I see posters at the post office reminding us when Mother’s Day is, I typically think of my mother. I have never really thought of myself as ‘mother’ as Chance had a little phase when he called me mother or mom, but went back to ‘mommy,’ which, for some reason, I resonate with even more.

When I think about what it took to bring me to a true “Mommy’s Day,” I remember the nearly five years of infertility and drugs to rock my body to produce eggs that might have a chance to turn into a baby. I think of the countless shots and blood tests I went through. I think of sitting in my bosses office sobbing during a hormone-induced meltdown and confiding that I was full of hormones trying to get pregnant. I felt so out of control of my body. I felt embarrassed, too.

I also remember when I gave up on the whole thing. I just thought, “If my body doesn’t want to get pregnant right now, there must be a reason.” I let it go, and a year and a half later I woke up one morning knowing that I would divorce my husband. I believe our souls are wise and they direct the body, too.

Four years later, I met Mark on December 17, 1999. Just over a year later, we welcomed Chance into the world.

Both Mark and I were told the ‘odds’ of having a baby were slim to none, but there we were having our miracle baby – easily and effortlessly.

That baby is now 10 years old, and he has been running around whispering, giggling and planning for “Mother’s Day.”

How sweet life is!

Happy Mother’s Day to all Mothers, Moms, Mommies out there!

Last Friday, Miss Debbie and I were having lunch at a favorite Mexican food restaurant near downtown Plano. As we chatted, she grew quite serious as she said, “I read one of your blog posts last week and I have something to say.”

I knew exactly what she was going to say, and was ready for it.

She said, “You wrote about the conference again and I just wanted to scream!”

I agreed. I had felt that way when I trekked back over into that place.

She said, “I mean, I get that it could be helpful to others going through that, but enough is ENOUGH!”

What Miss Debbie meant was that I have been talking about my ‘failure’ in my ‘visionary’ conference for nearly five years (next month will be its five-year-anniversary). I had asked her to ‘tell me’ when she saw anything on my blog that didn’t seem like ‘me’ as part of a BFF ‘truth pact’ we made several months ago. I realize that we all have many parts of us and those who love us can spot us leaving our ‘truth’ faster than anyone can.

She was sounding the alert for me last week on this ‘enough’ of talking about the failure stuff.

I giggled because I could barely wait to share with her what had happened after the posts. And, this, now, I want to share with you, too.

Nearly six weeks before, I had come home from visiting friends and felt a compulsion to start way back in my life and share the ‘road’ I have traveled. I had no idea why, but there was so much energy moving in me, I decided to trust it. For those of you who read my blog regularly, you know that I wrote for nearly two weeks on how ‘far’ I have traveled to ‘let go’ and ‘come home.’

Then, an interesting thing happened on the way to the end of the story…I had a life-changing dream.

In my dream, I was hired to set up a circus for a client. I was charged with hiring clowns for the circus, and wanting only the best for my client, I hired Cirque du Soleil! In my dream, the families came to the carnival and then I realized that I had hired clowns that cost too much money! At first, I was so afraid of the error, and then the part of me that has been ‘absent’ since the conference came in and I thought (in the dream), “Well, whether I need to pay them back on an installment plan for the next 10 years, we’ll figure it out because everything always works out!”

In the dream, the clowns arrived too early, and I realized that there would not be time for them to perform the entire act because the kids had to leave early to get to bed. The whole carnival seemed to be a ‘debacle’ (just like the conference, and the conference was ‘too early’ also in the eyes of others who felt I had ‘seen’ way too far ahead). But, still, the part of me that is sure, that knows, was right there in my dream not worried at all about anything. I was sure everything will work out one way or another.

While we waited for the clowns to go on, I went to go swimming in a bay nearby. I swam with a man and a woman under the full moon. The water felt refreshing and I swam away my concerns about the clowns, the money and the debacle. As I swam, I looked over and saw an enormous great white shark. I saw its fin first and then I noticed its massive body under the ink black water. In my dream, I did not feel afraid at all. And, I nonchalantly told the man and woman to quit splashing along and just to float in the current. I said, “Let the shark swim and take us out with her.”

The man did not listen and the shark moved stealthily underneath the woman and me and ate the man. I still was unafraid. In fact, I felt comforted by the massive animal. I felt this animal would devour anything that came near me, and I felt so grateful for its presence.

When I woke from this dream, I felt free. I felt safe. I felt protected. And, most importantly, I felt I was back. The part of me that ‘left’ was back. I felt thrilled, excited and happy!

And, this is also why it has been difficult to go back and continue with the energy (and the blog posts) that brought this dream…the dream was the finale, of sorts, to that active energy inside of me.

Miss Debbie acknowledged the dream and said, “Okay, but enough!”

And, I couldn’t agree with her more. Enough.

When I looked up Shark Medicine, this is what I found. Interesting? You decide!

Its role is survival. Its lesson is forgiveness (in my case…of the self). Its theme reclaiming innocence (for me, this is returning to my natural essence so there is no demarcation of ‘before’ the conference Tina and ‘after’ the conference Tina… there’s just the I that I am).

Additionally, Shark Medicine brings protection, which I felt so powerfully in the dream. There was no doubt in my mind that this animal would devour anything that might come to harm me. A large part of the failure had to do with one person, in particular, and, yes, just like in the dream, he was a man that continued to flail about!

The Shark offers the power of protection to those who resonate to it.  In the course of our life’s learning we can attract events and people that are disharmonious. When there is something in your life that you need to frighten away call upon the shark to help you. Working with shark medicine gives you the power and confidence to drive off  the negative.

I believe in the power of dreams because my own experience with transformational dreams is that I literally am not the same again…I am transcended with the energies. I share these deeply personal experiences to invite you into your own dream experiences.

And, thanks to Miss Debbie, BFF truth teller!

One thing I know for sure…I will NEVER forget the energy of this shark totem. Love knows no bounds. That shark felt like a part of me.

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I’ve had the opportunity to talk to several people who have been reading my praises for The King’s Speech, and each one has asked me, “What exactly is it that you see in this story?” No doubt they can feel my enthusiasm floating off of each blog post, but perhaps I haven’t communicated all that I felt from this movie…a great story of triumph!

As I watched the Oscars last night, I truly felt the presence of love as Colin thanked Olivia for being in his life…not unlike Sandra Bullock’s heartfelt tribute the year before to her husband at the time, Jesse James, which I believe was as real as anything regardless of what happened afterward – that moment was true. Natalie Portman, in love with love growing in her belly, also swept the big awards this year.

I asked Mark, “Have you ever noticed how people who are in love seem to leap to greater heights?” Perhaps I put two seemingly random connection points together, but it made me think about my own life and how when Mark and I first met everything seemed to bloom … it seemed like nothing would not grow in that energy. I had never known unconditional love like that before…it buoyed my spirit (I’ll share more thoughts on this and how love grows deeper over time in another post).

Great love…that’s what I see when I watch The King’s Speech. I see a man who stutters who has great love for his children, his wife, his country, but he does not yet have that great love for himself. Enter two others who bring heavy-duty mirrors to show him the love he is…to assist him in reclaiming his voice. Lionel (his speech therapist and friend) brings tough love and the unrelenting challenge of pushing the would-be King to be all that he already is. Elizabeth, the Duke’s wife, will not give up on love or on her husband. Her love holds space for the love the Duke already is to grow. In her Presence, he can bloom…and that is just like what I see in these actors…they bloom, grow more vibrant in the swirl of love. The King found his voice and acceptance (a.k.a. love) for himself through love – both friendship and deep romantic love as well as the love of his children. In so many ways, it is the most perfect example of ‘love conquers all.’

The saying, “Behind every great man is a woman no one knows,” and every other version of it seems to say that a great man is great and the woman is unknown, but the truth is without the woman, the man likely would not have been great. And so I see this, too, in The King’s Speech. In our day and age, there are as many men standing behind a woman, loving them…seeing them. Both necessary, equally as critical to the whole. Click on the image below to go to a great clip of “Elizabeth” in this stunning movie!

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Beverly lives in snowy Canada where it has been snowing for months already. She wrote this just a few days ago.

I was rushing to leave Wal-Mart when I saw it … or maybe I should say I felt it. Just inside the store doors I was drawn like a powerful magnet to this scene, and had they not been so intensely focused, they might have noticed me having stopped and intently starring at them … taking in every instant of the BEAUTIFUL Love that was flowing through, and all around, them.

There were three. Dad, Grandma and the third was a Cherub … well, let us say in more ordinary terms, a gorgeous baby boy, probably about 10 months old. He had been Christmas shopping with his loving Guardian Angels, and now his bright royal blue snowsuit was being donned to keep him warm on the way home this wintery evening! Grandma was doing the dressing, while Dad held the Cherub!

What was so extraordinary about this seemingly ordinary scene? Two things especially will always remain in my heart …

The Love that poured from Grandma’s eyes felt almost palpable as she donned that small blue snowsuit on her precious Grandson! Was it my imagination? Was she in the beauty of this present moment but also somewhere, back thirty five years or so, dressing her own infant son, who now towered before her, in a little blue coat to protect him from the cold? This scene of pure never-ending Love etched itself indelibly on my heart, and then, I saw another …

It nestled in beside the first, not only etching itself upon my heart, but filling me with a deep sense of peace … the peace that comes from truly knowing the eternal nature of Love …

Was this also my imagination? It seemed that this towering grown man, so lovingly holding his infant son, for a few brief (but eternal) moment was small again, reveling once more in his Mother’s precious unconditional Love. Quickly, however, he returned to his role as grown up and parent, but not before momentarily turning his head to the side (perhaps so no one might see his heart shining from his eyes) in so touching a gesture as, ever so briefly, he seemed to be embracing the Love within and all around him.

Might that fleeting look upon his adult face have said, “I am grown now, yet the Love I knew all the while I grew, remains, remains the same, and my adult Heart is full, as full as was my child Heart. I am at peace.” And then, out the doors into the blustery night they went … snowsuits, but most importantly, hearts full of Love keeping them warm.

Why do I cherish this brief encounter so? Perhaps because that same fleeting look upon the face of my grown Son has also filled my Heart, and I was reminded, with such awe and gratitude, of the indescribable preciousness of Love … Love that reaches across all time and into eternity.

Soon, on Christmas Day, we will be celebrating another awe-inspiring story of the Love of Mother and Child, a story that miraculously birthed the wondrous Love that now encircles our beautiful planet Earth, uplifting all who feel such Love with the blessings of Peace Hope and Joy!

Wishing You and Your Loved Ones a Blessed Christmas and Holiday Season Overflowing with Love, Peace, Hope and Joy Beverly…

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I feel SO grateful! Yesterday started out as one of those days I tried to schedule in three times as many errands as humanly possible. Soon I realized all would not all fit into one day, and something had to go. Reluctantly I gave up my planned trip to Michaels Arts and Craft Store (my sweet Sister-in-Crafting, Tina, will understand how difficult this was). Not only was I giving up my chance to delight at the aisles upon aisles of pure sparkling inspiration in this wonder-full store, but I was foregoing the exceptional timed special offer of 30% off my entire purchase.

Teeth tightly clenched, off I went to do the other errands, finally accomplished just before 9:00 p.m. “Now”, I said to myself , “let me just slip into Michaels for a just few minutes before they close,” thinking a few minutes is better than not at all, even though I had missed the 30% special.

In I went and got lost in Creators’ Heaven amongst the sparkling rhinestones, beads, decoupage papers and so many, many delights. A few things had found their way into my shopping cart when I realized it was much past 9:00 p.m. and the store was still filled with customers! Enquiring, I discovered the store was open until 10:00 p.m. … just enough time for me to explore to my heart’s content! GRATITUDE !!! My little ‘sacrifice,’ earlier in the day, had been so unexpectedly rewarded.

When I went to the cash register (right at 10 p.m.), what, to my surprise, did I find? My entire order was reduced by 30% after all … the timed special had so generously been extended until closing! GRATITUDE again!!!

I live in Canada, but today, alongside all my brothers and sisters who are celebrating Thanksgiving , I am grateful for so much … so much it feels as if it could take forever to list all that is in my heart! Whether you are reading this on Thanksgiving Day or any day of the year, I wish you so much JOY as you wrap all that means the most to you in loving blanket of gratitude!

This verse from Matthew came to my mind this morning and so re-enforces the Miracle Message (of Love) received in Michaels … “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them … Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these…

Shared with You with Love, Beverly…

The internet has got to be one of the most amazing deliverers of Miracle Messages, don’t you agree? Messages  just pop up on my screen seemingly from out of nowhere … messages that lead me miraculously to people, to events, to knowledge, wisdom, inspiration … they touch and change my life forever … they soften my heart and encourage me beyond my ability to adequately describe … they connect me with the amazing wonder and beauty of the Human Heart … with the incredible courage of the Human Spirit! They reignite a tiny spark of HOPE into a fiery blaze! How is it that all this amazing grace fits on my 17 inch computer screen? All things are possible it seems!

It was this link that arrived in a Miracle Message this morning that inspired my overflowing gratitude for the  Messengers on the Internet.  This song, by Mercy Me, is called Beautiful!  How precious is the  closing line, “You are Treasured, You are Sacred, You are His.”

I share this link with Beautiful You,

with Love, Beverly…

http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=7GGY7LNX

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Last week, after Beverly sent her sweet notes, and I shared them with you, I felt inspired to ask her to contribute here. Here’s another story from Bev… Enjoy!

I was in a small store I had heard about some years ago, but, because it is about an hour away , I never got there, till November 9^th,  that is.  The store is a specialty shop that sells meditation supplies, books, and offers  free Spiritual classes.  It is called Snow Lion, after the mythical creature portrayed in Buddhist art as the protector, supporter and upholder of the throne of wisdom.  I enjoyed exploring every nook and cranny of the store and listening to the owner explain the symbolic meanings behind different items for sale.  It was a special and meaningful time, indeed,  yet of most meaning were the moments just prior to my leaving the store.

On my way toward the door my attention was drawn to an obscure corner at the end of the hallway.  There was a small picture of the Dalai Lama.  Beneath it were three words.   “Never Give Up.”

Although I have heard these words so many times before … and have spoken them many times as well … it was this unexpected encounter with these three words, expressed by the Dalai Lama,  that on this day, in this way, that carved them indelibly on my heart and soul with power such as I have seldom felt.

Next to “I Love You,”  perhaps “Never Give Up”  are the three most important words in Human language.  I know for me, they are.  And perhaps, if we link both phrases together  “I Love You…Never Give Up” … we will  have the courage in every moment to walk forward in God’s Eternal Love and  into God’s Eternal Love.

P.S. This is a  photo of  the lid of a keepsake box I found at a home decorating shop last year … the box itself was broken, but the lid did not give up, and became sold  (to me) for half price … its message is a constant reminder to me …  I now share its message with you, with Love!!! 

Bev, thanks again for your precious heart!

This story reminds me of watching the show Wipe Out with Mark and Chance one night. Though the show makes me cringe most times, a petite, brown-haired phys ed teacher kept yelling, “Never Give Up! Never surrender!” as she plowed through the obstacle courses. She kept saying it and saying it and saying it, and though I don’t believe she won that night (if I remember, she came in second), I find myself every now and then hearing her voice flowing through my mind…"Never give up! Never surrender!” A few days ago, Mark and I were working on a project together, and I teased him about how I knew he was the guy for me when he REFUSED to give up figuring out how to replace the heating coil in a dryer. He chimed, “Never Give Up, Never surrender.” I laughed knowing exactly who he was imitating. And, though I do believe in surrendering to God, I also do believe in never giving up (on your heart)!

Maybe it is because we just got back from the gorgeous, autumn-flavored hills and valleys of Maryland, D.C. and Virginia, maybe it is because our Halloween Party was so much fun, and maybe, just maybe this is a really, really special year full of more magic than my heart has anticipated in a very long time.

Before we left for vacation, Mark and I hustled about cleaning and clearing out clutter in a way that made absolutely no sense as our vacation was just days away. I mean, Really? Is cleaning the garage the most important thing to do before going on vacation? Apparently it was. We donated, threw out and reorganized everything in the garage. I felt guided, directed, virtually compelled to clear the space.

Even though I kept eyeing the Christmas decorations, we dutifully put up all of the Halloween decorations (our backyard transforms into a Halloween Wonderland each year).

After the party this past Saturday, we put up the vintage decorations, and bustled about cleaning up the house. Mark emerged from the garage with a Santa hat on his head and it both cracked me up and delighted me as my heart is already swimming toward this holiday season. The weather Sunday felt amazing…a cool breeze as we moved about in the backyard.

We are invited to Thanksgiving dinner with sweet friends – a real ‘down home’ style Thanksgiving – and I already have the dessert menu planned out. Pumpkin Pie, Brownies and Banana Pudding ought to cover everyone’s cravings.

Yesterday, I woke up with the most unexplainable urge to listen to Christmas carols. Pandora streamed Christmas tunes, and though I couldn’t write to Bing Crosby’s White Christmas and had to switch back to classical instrumentals, the vibe must have been in the air.

When Chance came downstairs, he dressed Rico up in Mark’s Santa hat, and much to our surprise, Rico ‘posed’ (almost like Secretariat) for these photos. LOL

Rico is four now and in English Mastiff years that means middle age. It’s hard to believe our forever dog has been with us that long. He’s starting to get grey in his face and his left eyebrow has some grey too. He is still the same sweet, mellow fellow we took home so many years ago.

A few years ago, I felt compelled to plant roses in my yard. At the time, I experienced a deeply transformational experience with Mother Mary, Jesus and nature. Roses seemed to beckon and call from every corner of the Universe.

I’ve noticed in sessions that roses show up often with Mother Mary and Jesus. These beauties always remind of bittersweetness… the beauty of the rose combined with the thorns.

I’ve written about this divine connection and roses, and many people send their rose stories…these stories, in particular, highlight the beauty of awareness…of interacting with divine and of seeing the messages of love in everything.

Beverly, a dear friend and soul sister, emailed a couple of rose stories I wanted to share with you all!

Just so thought of you when I saw this (completely unplanned) reflection … it is too funny … Jesus does love his roses and so do you so I just had to share this picture of my last rose of summer … I hope life is  wonder-full for you in every moment … God bless, and remember to smell the roses … don’t you just love the way messages arrive? … xoxo Bev

Here’s another from Bev…

Must share another rose story about what I thought was  the last rose of summer till this one came along ) … It was beautiful too, and I brought it indoors thinking there was going to be frost and placed it beside the same picture of Jesus (see the photo below)… it was there for quite a few days and still looked beautiful … then I went out of town thinking it would be wilted when I returned … but … when I got back it was still amazing and stayed that way for a long time … wow… and … when it finally faded, and dried … at the very centre, a petal dried in the shape of a heart … such a gift …

Can you see the heart in the center of the rose below?

Beverly… thanks for sharing your heart and beautiful stories with us!

Last week on Queen of Dreams Radio, I talked about being the flow, living in the present and soaking up the amazing-ness of life. I have floated around on birthday dreams and wishes for more than a week now, and I wanted to share with you some of these.

I thought about this… and a remark someone made, actually, about someone else is what made me think… this isn’t about me and my birthday, this is about gratitude for those who make my life rich… with their creativity, with their Presence and with their loving kindness.

Yes, life is sweet! I wanted to share the love with you… to inspire you to create something for someone you love.

Can you see the quote? I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day. – E.B. White Remember E.B.? He’s the guy who wrote Charlotte’s Web, Stuart Little and the little guide book every writer MUST HAVE… Elements of Style by he and his pal, William Strunk, Jr.  It wasn’t lost on me that E.B. came at a synchronous moment…as I have been pondering the intersection of the two…to both improve (or contribute to it) while also immensely enjoying it. I believe we each have an intersection in our hearts for experiencing that.

This is the first birthday card of the season… Miss Debbie and I have a big PLAY DATE planned next week, so this little card arrive in the mail with this little card tucked inside.

I went to lunch with another friend, and we had a scrumptious lunch at Houston’s (one of my favs) and then head over to Celestial Park, which is one of her favs. Now, one of my favs, and this is something no one has ever done for me – ever – on my birthday – thank you! And, yes, it is still this green here in Texas.

See that oblong shaped plaque? My friend stood at one end and I stood at the other and she sang happy birthday to me. The echo was beautiful and I felt like the Queen of the Stars! Those round plaques are the phases of the moon. If you match up the phases, then you can talk to each other across the open area.

Here’s the entryway to the upper deck area where the plaques are. Each one of the stairs has poems about the stars. This park is so special and starry!

The next day, some friends came over and brought this yummy cake… Italian Wedding Cream… can you say, “Forget the easy weight loss!” LOL So yummy.

One of the best things about this birthday has been the magic quality surrounding it that has persisted, I believe, because of where I’ve been living myself. These dear friends shared with us a project they were working on a couple of weeks ago. That was fun, cool and totally exciting, but then they asked… “Do you want to go with us? On tour?” I felt like, “How fast can I pack my bags? Oh yes!!” More details to come on that, and I can’t even wait for you to hear all about it because YOU will love it, too, and come do it with us. Shhhh, don’t tell, but it’s all about you, your dreams and getting the link up to anything that’s possible!

More tomorrow on this amazing birthday… full of love. Happy Birthday to you, too!

There we were…fed and happy. I couldn’t shake the feeling that felt like energy had emanated from every place in the little cafe that opened its doors to the street. I loved the indoor interior with its little ceramic and metal birds. Ah, the flight theme again… time to fly, time to fly.

Floating around the streets of Del Mar and La Jolla, we had a great time. On one of the days, we found ourselves at a little bookstore and met a wonderful teacher named N’Vela… what a delight. She looked at me and shared a few bits of wisdom that I can barely remember now – something about my book and distribution. What I remember most is her chat with Abby. I could literally feel her access Abby’s spirit and affirm her place on a stage in front of many, many people. ‘How beautiful!’ I thought as I watched Abby beam in appreciation. Gifts, gifts everywhere I thought to myself. How beautiful we are when we all connect with God.

From there, we took a trip of trust with our beautiful messengers… right, left and around again. How wonderful to play. We ended up in LaJolla looking at an apartment for rent and how wonderful it was to really sink into the idea of spending six months out of the year less than a block from the ocean in LaJolla. I had no idea it was so affordable. I had so many beliefs about what things cost in California (in my mind, I’m thinking it is $$60K a week or so from watching various tv shows), I would never even permit myself to consider this a dream. How interesting… and how exciting!

I spoke with Erika Morrell, the Soul Mate Medium, today and we had the *BEST* conversation about living in love (that’s Erika’s tag line – Live in Love). Life is SO about living in Love and being the love that you are.

I am so excited that I will be on her radio show, The Soul Mate Medium Experience, next Monday night at 7 PM PST, 8 PM MST, 9 PM CST, and 10 PM EST, on www.LATalkRadio.com. If you miss it, you can access the show later at http://LATalkRadio.com/Erika.php.

Love really is the answer.

And, THAT reminds me… I LOVE the new Barbra Streisand CD!

Life is fun. We’ve been talking a great deal with people about singing their song. About truly letting go and doing what makes you giddy, happy with delight and in love with yourself and the world.

I’ve been following those things that inspire me, too. The guitar was my love…truly…when I was a kid. Last week I tired of ‘trying’ to get it and just strummed and strummed feeling the sound filling my body. I lost myself in the sound and knew that, regardless of the reason why I picked up this guitar, I needed to stay with it and see where it would take me.

Today, I went to my guitar lesson with Chris Buchanan who is as sweet a soul as has ever lived. His site is Patient Guitar Lessons.com and boy is he ever patient. What a gift.

As I listened, and played a little hummingbird came to the window. I asked if she comes often. He said no. She looped around and came back again. Wow. How beautiful.

The last time I was there a huge woodpecker came to the window. I thought to myself today… what a magical window! How precious those moments are.

I wondered… is the bird hearing our song? Has she come to sing along?

And that’s when I felt this rapturous unity of everything. It was just a split second… but long enough that I noticed it. Aaaah. It felt so quenching for the thirst inside of me.

I am looking forward to singing my song… and inviting you to sing along… and to hearing your song…and singing along.

Here’s what hummingbird brings… funny that I just blogged about beauty yesterday… ah, how perfect.

The hummingbird brings us the gift of beauty. The ruby throated hummingbird is one of the most common species in North America. This energetic little bird migrates 1800 miles from the Eastern US to spend winter in Central America.  This distance alone indicates the hummingbirds stamina and perseverance.  They can show us how to go the distance without becoming depleted.

When hummingbirds mate, the male claims a territory and attracts a female to it. When she appears, he does a courtship dance, flying back and forth in a perfect arc. The arc symbolizes a luminous bridge connecting one life to another. Male hummingbirds start the process of procreation and the female completes it.  The arc then becomes a circle, a cycle of completion.  When the hummingbird flies into our lives it can indicate a need within ourselves to complete a specific lesson that we have been avoiding.  Once the mating act is done the males go to look for other females.  The mother lays and incubates the eggs for the required 16 days and then raises the young by herself.  The number 16  is important for those with this medicine.  It represents change within a 16 day period.

Hummingbirds flap their wings at the fantastic rate of 90 beats per second during normal flight and up to 200 beats per second during courtship, giving them their humming sound.  They have excellent maneuverability in flight.  They can hover in the air, fly backward, forward and sideways.  The hummingbird flies everywhere because it cannot walk well.  Hummingbirds have the advantage of seeing things from all angles and can show us how to expand our perceptions.

Hummingbirds are small but expend so much energy flying that they require large amounts of sugar rich flower nectar to stay alive, having to eat twice their body weight a day.  Because of its small size and its high degree of activity, it loses body heat quickly, so it must digest food quickly.  Those with this totem need to watch their own sugar levels and take care of their digestive system.

The hummingbird serves to remind us of the beauty  and wonder of the world.  While their speed and sound may sometimes startle us, they help pull our attention out of the mundane so that we can acknowledge and appreciate the beauty of Creation.

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Ooooh, I love to meditate.

Do you?

To me, it is like slipping into a silky, sparkly, shiny space to be with God and the messengers and to see me in all I am too.

Meditating frees up space, allows us to create from a centered space, and is a beautiful gift we can give to ourselves (from ourselves).

I love Kelly Howell’s CDs for people who have busy minds. I remember when I first started how THANKFUL I was to have something for my ‘mind’ to ‘do’… guided meditations do that wonderfully well!

Some people say prayer is talking and meditating is listening to God. I believe meditating is both. I often talk and listen all at the same time. It is my sacred space to commune with the greater consciousness of All That Is.

If you have let your meditation practice slide… please give yourself the gift of you again. Spend time with your precious soul…then share it with others.

Mary sent this to me! She is an amazing designer and creator of super crafty, wonderfully artsy things.

Isn’t it sooo cute?

Can you read what it says? Open Your Gifts…time with you via email or phone or in person is my gift.

Thank you!

Oh wow… look at that. Another year has gone by. Lots of years have passed since I first sprang into this world – 41, in fact.

I find that I really don’t think much about age until someone brings it up, or until I talk to someone who doesn’t know much about the 80s (when we get to ‘explain’ the jokes or how funny things were back then).

The older I get the more I realize life really is all about love. And we all have our special brand of it.

It’s perfect, really.

You are perfect, really.

So am I.

Let’s celebrate together!

Chance drew this for me…I love his drawings! I would have never thought to have balloons coming OUT of a mouth… so CREATIVE! And these words… crazy…yummy…party…love you…yay!

So sweet!