Publisher Leyla Hur Editor-in-Chief Leyla Hur Editor@MagnifyYou.com Managing Editor Benjamin Hur Regular Contributors Leyla Hur, Brett Baughman, Stuart Rosen, Dr. Jeanine Austin, Paul Lizak, Amy Wilcox Doebler, Chriss Barr, Michelle Viggiano, Shelley Smith, Bindi Shah, Primrose Williams, Crystal Dawn Morris, Justin Sachs, Aaron Huey, Ressa Kinnear, Pat Matson, Sherry Harris
Editor’s Corner As I sit to write this, I wonder where the summer has gone to. The past months have been definite learning experiences, and as the days begin to grow shorter I sit here at my laptop and reflect upon many things. A few weeks ago, I landed in the Emergency Department of my local hospital after one of my cats mauled me. He had a shock when he had jumped on my lap and landed on my other cat sitting snuggly under an Afghan I had crocheted several years ago. Who would have thought that cat bites and scratches would land one in the hospital, admitted, undergoing emergency surgery and then follow-up surgery the next day? I mean, come-on, it’s a cat… domesticated at that… not a lion; although I have since undergone some interesting questioning from concerned friends as to my claims that he is actually a regular house-cat. The photo below should put to end such speculation.
Additional Contributors Millinda Preciado, Shelle Harman, Cheryl and Wayne Fournier, Lara Lyseight, Terri Nichols, Jill Mattson, Jennifer Peeks, Steve L. Hughes, Carlotta Jones, Gabriel Constans, Sammie Clemmons, Dawn Daws, Margaret “MJ” Purk, Yvonne Handford, Angel Wolff
Art Director Bubonic Media Media@MagnifyYou.com Graphic Designer Bubonic Media
Being one to always seek the blessings in each situation, I found the blessing in my beloved feline attacking me when, while in the hospital, it was discovered that I had severe diabetes. Had this not happened, I would not have known. So maybe… Ash just saved my life?! As the saying goes, “don’t shoot the messenger”, and I certainly have not done that.
Advertising Executive Eric Braund Ericb@MagnifyYou.com National Advertising Office Bubonic Media 5024 South Ash Avenue Suite 104 Tempe, AZ 85282 USA 1-888-801-8316 Magnify You Magazine 7904 East Chaparral Road Suite A110-289 Scottsdale, AZ 85250 USA Magnify You is published by Leyla Hur. All editorial material, including editorial comments, opinions, and statements of fact appearing in this publication, represents the views of the respective authors and does not necessarily carry the endorsement of Leyla Hur or its officers. Information in Magnify You is gathered from sources considered to be reliable, but the accuracy of all information cannot be guaranteed. The publication of any advertisements is not to be construed as an endorsement of the product or service offered unless it is specifically stated in the ad that there is such approval or endorsement. Products and Services advertised may not be available at the time of publication. All submitted articles, photos, and artwork (“Submissions”) become the property of the publisher (Leyla Hur). The publisher is under no obligation to return any Submissions. The publisher has the unrestricted right to print all or any portion of submissions, to edit, print, re-print, use, alter, or disregard all or any portion of said materials at its sole discretion, in any medium now or hereafter used by the publisher in connection with its business operations. This includes, but is not limited to magazines, books, calendars, catalogues, merchandise, advertisements, video, television, and Internet applications. The text of any and all photo captions is at the Publisher’s sole discretion, and may be fictitious. All Submissions must be exclusive to the Publisher (unless otherwise negotiated with Publisher) who will provide appropriate credit to the author, photographer, or artist of published works, and will indicate if the same has been excerpted from or materially changed from original content. Other terms of usage may apply if in writing and signed by the submitting party. Send to: Leyla Hur, Publisher at Magnify You Magazine, 7904 East Chaparral Road, Suite A110-289, Scottsdale, AZ 85250 USA. The Publisher is exempt from the record keeping requirements and disclosure statements mandated by 18 U.S. Code Section 2257(a) through (c) and the pertinent Regulations, 28 C.F.R. Ch.1, part 75 since all such materials fall within the definition of exempted material set forth in Section 75.7(a) (1-3) of the pertinent Regulations.
As I often do at the end of seasons, I reflect back over the season, and the year to this date. I look over my triumphs, areas where I need to work harder, and goals I have set and yet to achieve.
April and May were very difficult months for me. We lost two beloved dogs within five weeks of each other. A week later, news came of the passing of a very dear little boy to me. I had met him only once, but his life inspired me to make a difference in my own life, and in the lives of those around me, and indeed make an impact in the world, one small step at a time. In 2007, I was approached by an organization who matched up celebrities with terminally ill children. The objective was to “make a difference” in the lives of the children. Personally, I think that it is US whose lives change forever for having known these children. Logan had Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Type 1. I had no idea what this was; so I immediately began to do my research and I asked questions of Logan’s amazing mother, Shelle. At Christmas that year, I met this “wonder-kid” for the first, and unfortunately, only time. I call him “wonder-kid” because Logan went against the norm and labels that this dis-ease creates. Children diagnosed with Type 1 do not usually live passed their first birthday (if they even make it that far), but here was this precious little boy, almost turning three! I resonated with him. I too had had labels placed on
me, but I fought past them and created a life of living. On May 11th this year, Logan lost his battle to SMA and went Home. While his physical presence is no longer here, he is surely here in Spirit and it is without doubt that Logan’s Legacy continues. Without being able to walk or talk, Logan created incredible changes for others with SMA. I learned of a young girl in Tucson who is alive today because of Logan and the medication that Logan’s Mum, Shelle advocated for. Because of this action, this little girl was able to get on the same medication, and today she is in her fourth year. The blessings I have received from knowing Logan and his parents Chris and Shelle have been inexpressible. The amount of strength and courage that this young couple has is insurmountable. If any one person could learn one lesson from this couple, it is their strength in their determination to never give up, to seemingly have no understanding of the word “defeat”. Even today, after having lost three children, they continue to express a positive attitude towards life. They do not see the defeat that has occurred in their lives, but rather they look to the future and actively work to make a continued difference as they strive to find a cure for this malicious dis-ease. The amazing thing in reading the articles submitted by parents and those living with this dis-ease, is that Chris and Shelle do not stand alone. These parents and youngsters have to be among the most positive, upbeat, and determined people I have ever encountered. Their stories will move you, will amaze you, and will move you to positive actions in your own lives. Celebrating your magnificence, Leyla Hur Editor-in-Chief
Logan “LogiBear” Harman March 4 2005 – May 11 2009
Table of Contents
Features
Pg. 57 Raw Ingredients of Spirituality
Pg. 16 Mission Accomplished!
BY PAT
BY LUAN
Pg. 28 The Face of SMA
Pg. 59 From Fat to Enlightenment
Pg. 20 The Dorm Room
BY PAT
BY MICHELLE
BY
SHELLE HARMAN
Pg. 39 A Beautiful Chapter of Life BY
CHERYL AND WAYNE FOURNIER
Pg. 41 “My Angel Baby” BY
MILLINDA PRECIADO
Pg. 43 SMA ~ A Mother’s Journey BY TERRI
NICHOLS
Pg. 45 Living With SMA Type II BY
ANGEL WOLFE
Pg. 47 Casey’s Gift of Love BY DAWN
DAWS
Pg. 50 Overcoming Obstacles BY MARGARET
“MJ” PURK
MATSON
MATSON
HANDFORD
Pg. 81 Book Excerpt: Buddha’s Wife BY GABRIEL
CONSTANS
Featured Topics Pg. 7 Healing With Sound BY JILL
MATTSON
Pg. 24 Kids Saving Money BY JENNIFER
PEEKS
Pg. 25 3-Ways to Stop Exam Panic BY LAURA
LYESIGHT
VIGGIANO
Pg. 63 Hydrosols – Liquid Assets
Pg. 22 Back-to-School Special
BY PRIMROSE
BY RESSA
WILLIAMS
KINNEAR
Pg. 65 Hemorrhoid Home Treatment
Pg. 26 Keep Your Chakra’s Energized and Open
BY STEVE
BY CRYSTAL
HUGHES
DAWN MORRIS
Pg. 66 Osteoporosis and Exercise
Pg. 54 Eye Gazing
BY SAMMIE
BY CRYSTAL
CLEMMONS
DAWN MORRIS
Pg. 66 Preventing Diabetes
Pg. 58 Death
BY CARLOTTA
BY AARON
JONES
HUEY
Pg. 70 Creating a Healthy Lifestyle
Pg. 60 How to Find N, S, E, W the Easy Way
BY PAUL
BY CHRISS
LIZAK
Pg. 72 Mudras for Meditation BY BINDI
SHAH
BARR
Pg. 61 Mother Nature Bestows Bounties of the Season BY PAUL
Pg. 53 Spiritual Healing BY YVONNE
MITCHELL
LIZAK
Regular Columns
Pg. 67 Natural Sunburn Relief
Pg. 6 Extending the Love That You Are
Pg. 74 “Happy Birthday Julia!”
BY SHERRY
BY AMY
HARRIS
Pg. 10 Back-to-School the Feng Shui Way BY CHRISS
BARR
Pg. 11 Patty and the Purple Coat BY PAT
MATSON
Pg. 14 The Art of Meditation for Children BY BINDI
SHAH
BY PRIMROSE
WILLIAMS
WILCOX
Pg. 77 Effective Shading BY SHELLEY
SMITH
Pg. 78 Picking up the Pieces BY DR.
JEANINE AUSTIN
Pg. 79 Plan Z BY STUART
ROSEN
EXTENDING THE LOVE THAT YOU ARE that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.” Why would we be afraid of our grandness, of letting our light shine? The answer is conditioning, years and years of conditioning that tells us in a myriad of ways that we are inadequate, unlovable, and definitely not special. How can I believe that I am God’s expression of Love if I believe all that negative conditioning? How do I change it? Extending love to the layers of ‘not good enough’ dissolves it piece by piece until underneath all that is left is what we already are: Love. We are love, pure and simple. When we start to remember who we truly are, connecting with the love within that we are, it becomes so much easier to see the love in others. Not only to see the love in others, but to connect with the allpervading love which is the universe we live in. I see love in the trees, in the faces at the grocery store, in the frown of an impatient person behind the wheel of a car. I see love everywhere and celebrate its diversity. Love is infinite in its presentation. Sometimes it looks like love looking for itself. Sometimes it looks like love expanding itself. Love is kind, compassionate, eternal, and always helpful. It never sees lack, pain or suffering. Love sees opportunities to invite in more light, more compassion, more nurturing. Love allows and accepts, needing to change nothing. Love celebrates its existence in each moment, living in the present; open to whatever comes knowing that it is all God, all perfect, all supportive of a peaceful, loving expression of Self.
When I enquire and ask the big question “Who Am I?” The answer is always LOVE. To me the word God and Love are synonymous. To be Love, I am respectful to myself, kind and nurturing and consistently supportive of me as God in human form. I appreciate myself, I approve of myself and I create my own security knowing there is no lack in God’s Divine Universe. I lovingly remind myself that I am not my body any more than I am my mind. I remind myself that I am not separate from the Love that is everywhere and in everyone. What are the barriers to embodying, truly knowing, who we are? What keeps us from consistently living the joyful, spontaneous expression of God that we are? The Ego. The Ego likes to keep us separate, frightened, little. I think Marianne Williamson’s poem Our Deepest Fear says it beautifully: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is
Well then, how do we learn to extend Love when we are immersed in fear, doubt and negativity? I started by remembering a time that was special, heartwarming for me. It could have been an event in my own life or something I read about or watched. I imagined it and checked in to see how my heart space felt. It felt warm and tingly. I continue to focus on that feeling really allowing it to deepen. As the feeling deepens the love starts to flow out of me in waves of gratitude, joy and peace. I imagine my heart filled with love that flows everywhere. It envelopes whatever I am feeling separate from and brings it home to be nurtured, adored and protected. A friend of mine has a wonderful saying by Erich Shiffmann on her email site; “Love is what is left when you let go of everything you do not need.” Extending love to what is not needed is a powerful way to let go of the emotional baggage we have been carrying for so long.
When something comes up for me to examine, a fear, a doubt, or an anger, I imagine holding it in my arms as if I was cradling a baby. I feel tremendous love for it and it softens and starts to dissolve. I feel God’s Love totally filling me. Another practice I have found helpful is to say to myself “I chose Love” or “I love you, thank-you” from Ho’oponono. Two amazing teachers of this ancient Huna healing tradition are D. Hew Len and Mabel Katz. They teach us to be in tune with the God within and to forgive ourselves for making the decision to separate from Source. They teach that what I see in you is what is inside of me. I thank-you for showing me and I love you for being the divine expression of God that you are reflecting God back to me. Every day I find more and more ways to extend God’s Love that fills me with peace and joy. Sherry is a psychotherapist who also does spiritual counseling. She teaches classes in Hearing God’s Voice. For an appointment call 613-236-8852 or email me at harris.sherry@gmail.com.
Healing with Sound: Transformative Aspects of music
My personal interest in sound for healing and expanding consciousness was the result of my lifelong love affair with music, coupled with my personal spiritual quest – which I started in earnest about 25 years ago. I was drawn to the study of antiquity – specifically I examined methods employing sound and music to alter and improve mind, body, emotions, energy and spiritual aspects of practitioners’ lives. Over many years, I collected voluminous materials on Sound Healing which prompted me to write a book on the topic where I include interviews with leading researchers and scientists in the field. Concurrent with my research, I began producing my own recordings. In the early 2000’s I built a studio in my home to record my own compositions. I blend my original music with ancient techniques and embed special sounds in the tracks. The end result is pleasing and beneficial on multiple levels. Many people enjoy the music as a normal listening experience; more significantly other people have been able to reach new levels of consciousness, peace and wellness by focused listening to my compositions. The field of Sound Healing is a rapidly growing discipline that is attracting great interest. As indicated above, many of the techniques that are employed stem from ancient traditions. There is also cutting edge research underway, which is expanding the understanding and promise of this field. An important technique in Sound Healing utilizes the intricate combination and interplay of numerous musical effects. It is the magical and complex interaction of special sounds with the human body and the mind that give the impressive results that can be achieved with Sound Healing.
Music Aspect #1; Intervals An interval is a technique used in music where two different notes are sounded at the same time. The individual notes combine to produce a new sound effect different than either of the two originals. This phenomenon is due to the interaction of the sound waves comprising each note. Sound waves are like waves on the ocean – only they are traveling through air. When two waves interfere constructively you get a higher wave – a higher pitch. When two sound waves interfere destructively you get a lower note. Simply put, sound waves are energy and when two or more interact, they change each other. When the brain receives tones that are presented extremely close to the ears (as when you wear headphones) the brain can only “hear” one tone at a time.
If you play a different tone into each ear (with head phones), then the brain combines and averages both tones, and you hear a pulsing sound which is the average of the two tones. What is thrilling about this is that you have just introduced “whole brain” functioning - both your right and left brain hemispheres are working together processing this information. Regular use of “whole brain” functioning has been shown to enhance intelligence. Studies also suggest that this phenomenon makes your brain more nimble and flexible, reducing mental decline. Certain intervals impact our states of consciousness and produce different feelings. For example, a major fifth interval produces a harmonious, spiritual feeling while a major seventh interval produces a moody emotion and a minor third creates a melancholy feel. Amazingly different sound intervals create unique feelings and moods. Techniques employing sound intervals have shown impressive results relieving depression and other negative emotions such as loneliness, pity and anger.
Music Aspect # 2; Pitch The pitch of a note is how high or low it sounds. Higher frequency is higher pitch – corresponding to faster vibrations or “tighter waves” and higher energy. Lower pitch is due to slower vibrations. French physicist, Joel Sternheimer, discovered that: “while a protein is being assembled from its 20 constituent amino acids in the ‘Cell Factory’ called the ribosome, the amino acid’s (movements) are considerably slowed down…so a vibration or a frequency can be calculated…and transcribed into acoustical bandwidth, as a note…” (Jean – Pierre Lentin, Keelynet.com) Sternheimer’s point is that the vibration of each amino acid corresponds to a note. If you play the notes, corresponding to the amino acids, back in the order that they are combined in a protein, a melody results. When the melody of the amino acids is played back to the same plant, its growth is increased by up to 250 percent and resilience to drought and disease is improved.
molecule), alpha 1-antitrypsin (lung molecule) and cytochrome (liver molecule). Robert Monroe, who founded the Monroe Institute, discovered that listening to recordings of specific pitches produced psychic phenomena in listeners. The French ear, nose and throat doctor, Alfred Tomatis, demonstrated that higher pitches charge the neocortex of the brain, giving people energy. Scientists have documented that certain brainwaves correspond to a physiological state in which beneficial chemicals are produced in our bodies. Manufacturers of sound and light machines tout that special sounds can induce delta and theta brain waves. Chemicals produced while in delta and theta brain states are: endorphins (for feeling good), catecholamines (vital for memory and learning), DHEA (increase resistance to disease), lowered cortisol (slows the aging process), vasopressin (boosts serotonin to ease pain) and melotonin (sleep aid). Other documented benefits accompanying delta and theta brain wave states include the experience of tranquility, pain control, creativity, euphoria, excitement, focused attention, enhanced problem solving, increased memory, accelerated healing, behavior modification, improvements in mental and emotional health.
Music Aspect #3; Rhythm It has often been said that the human body is an orchestra with the heart drumming out the constant beat. In the womb, we hear our first communication in the rhythm of the mother’s heartbeat. We receive reassurance through a steady rhythm. Rhythm can affect our pulse and heart rate, breath, stress response, and the pace of our voice, walking and activities. A healing rhythm increases or slows our energy down, strengthening the elasticity of our pulse, helping us gain vitality. Our own rhythms can be a more complete expression of who we are than we realize.
Just as plants have shown to be positively affected by Sternheimer’s melodies, there are many researchers studying the effects of pitches and melodies on human health, brain waves and states of consciousness.
On a busy street watch the variations of walking; some people bounce, others shuffle and a few march. Some are rigid, others flexible. Other variations include jerkiness versus regularity of rhythm, or a calm rhythm versus a rushed one.
Specifically, Annette Kearl, MA, MT-BC, has said that within Beethoven’s music are melodies of ACTH (kidney
Our personality and emotions can be revealed in the rhythm of our walk.
Words have rhythm. Our rate of speaking and associated movements is an expression of individualism, in fact they often show unspoken communication, our underlining meaning beneath our words. While our words may say one thing, our rhythm of words and body language can say another, revealing a deeper truth.
Back to School the Feng Shui Way!
Reinhard Flatischler, who developed the revolutionary approach to rhythm, combining pulse, breath, voice and rhythm, said in his book, The Forgotten Power of Rhythm, “The drum returns my energy by translating it into audible rhythm and thus completes a circuit of energy that allows me to connect with my own power.” The rhythm expresses our own energy and power. American Indians used drum rhythms to induce trances, in which they experienced “out of the body” travel, similar to effects from hallucinatory drugs. These “journeys” were used to glean information from the future or to receive wisdom for their decisions and purposes in life. African witch doctors utilized drum beats to work dancers into a frenzy, citing that these experiences cause one to shed negative energy that can be the underlying cause of illness. Rhythm is an important contribution in the many faceted art of Sound Healing. Impressive results can be obtained when rhythm is properly combined with other powerful Sound Healing techniques. Science is beginning to embrace and understand many Sound Healing techniques some originating from antiquity. Sound Healing can profoundly impact and change our health, intelligence and energy. I am excited to be involved in this field as a researcher but more importantly through my musical recordings. The creative process is very fulfilling but I am most rewarded in realizing the benefits that others can receive from sound and music. Jill Mattson is an accomplished musician, composer and author of works on Sound Healing. Jill wrote “Ancient Sound – Modern Healing” and “Transformative Power In Sound: Intelligence, Health and Energy Through the Magic of Music”. She is currently working on a book about BioAcoustics featuring Sharry Edwards. She lectures throughout the U.S. on the power of Sound Healing. Jill has numerous CDs with healing and transforming energy that employ her special techniques. Sample Jill’s music and cyber gallery of art at www.jillswingsoflight.com, and redbubbledotcom/Jill Mattson. Free Sound Healing Newsletter and mp3’s available at www.jillshealingmusic.com.
Yes, it’s that time of year again. Summer is over and Labor Day is almost here so that means the kids are headed back to school. While you’re buying uniforms, getting haircuts and stocking up on paper and pencils don’t forget to feng shui too. Here are some helpful tips to get you started off on the right foot. Last year’s back pack and lunch box hold last year’s energy and if your son or daughter had a great school year last year, plenty of friends and good grades then recycling his or her back pack and lunch box can be a good idea, not to mention budget friendly. But if last year wasn’t exactly great or your child is moving to a new school you’ll want to replace their old packs with new ones so they start the new year with a clean slate and new energy. If you do re-use last year’s school supplies make sure they look fresh and clean. Torn fabric, holes and dirt represent worn, tired energy so make any needed repairs and wipe everything down with lavender water (a few drops of lavender essential oil in water). If everything still looks worn or shabby even after your
repair and clean up efforts then be sure to replace these items with new ones. After school begins place your child’s textbooks and homework in the northeast area of their bedroom. The northeast is the Wisdom area in feng shui so is the ideal place to put their books. Having your child sit facing the northeast is good for studying too so be sure to have them do their homework facing this direction at home. If you really want your child to excel this year put their books in their personal Wisdom direction. This is much more effective than using the general feng shui Wisdom direction (northeast) because their personal Wisdom direction is based on their birthday so this direction is specific to them which means it works much better. Turn their desks so they face this direction when they study too. Do you want your child to have more friends or improve their relationship with the ones they already have? Put a picture of their class photo in the southwest area of their study room or their bedroom. This is the general Relationship area in feng shui so is good for strengthening friendships. Of course, putting the photo in your child’s personal Relationship area of their bedroom is best and will help them make even more friends. Last but not least you can make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep so they’re ready for school in the morning by turning their bed so that the headboard is on the wall of their personal Health direction. This is ideal for growing bodies and developing minds. If you can’t turn their bed then put a piece of their sports gear or something related to health like their vitamins in their personal Health area of their bedroom. Now that you have the ideal feng shui for supplies, learning and friends here’s to your child having the best school year ever – the feng shui way! Chriss Barr is the best selling author of ‘4 Easy Ways to Ignite Your Love Life & Fatten Your Wallet’ where you’ll discover the easy and fun way to feng shui your best directions. Available now on www.IgniteYourLoveLife.com and Amazon.com. Contact Chriss at chrissb@magnifyyou.com.
Patty and the Purple Coat: Going Back to School Spiritually My back-to-school memories go directly to a scene in Kaufman’s Department Store where my mom relented and bought me the winter coat of my choice - my royal purple coat with the curly, grey lamb’s wool hem, cuffs and muff. Oh, I was so stylish in that coat and I felt beautifully elegant wearing it. I loved everything about going back to school except the new shoes piece. My mother had problem feet and she was bound and determined that would not happen to me, so I had to wear Girl Scout oxfords. I wanted black patent leather Mary Janes. I did not enjoy having to wear those oxfords, but I do have healthy feet, so I may have to begrudgingly give her that one. What were your back to school preparations like? Were you excited at the prospect of moving up one grade? Did you think you were capable of handling the accelerated learning or did it frighten you? Did you hope there would be new students in your class or were you happy to renew your after-summer friendships with your old friends? You can capture as a microcosm one of your grade school memories. You can wrap it in a mental bubble, hold it in your hand, and look at it as if you weren’t in the scene itself, but were just a casual observer. And what do you see there? I see eagerness. I loved to get the reader for that year. I loved the new stories. I see openness. I loved the excitement of the challenge of learning new things. I see myself forward facing. I seldom looked back with regrets, only forward with anticipation. I see gratitude for my older cousin’s hand-
me-downs. I see joy for having matching dresses with my sister. We’re adults now. We don’t get to shop for school clothes over the summer any more. We don’t get to stir up anticipation and excitement with regularity any more because we are all done with school, right? I don’t think we need to be done. Let’s conjure up some ways to inject that excitement into our lives this month. Are you ready for some freshness? Let’s Go Back to School The greatest joy in my life centers around things spiritual. I define things spiritual as the things that involve the working of my mentality. You cannot see a mind, right? Hence, spiritual. So let’s figure out a way to go back to school for our spiritual or mental selves. Some of us are church attendees and that once-a-week hit is enough for us. Some of us attend additional church classes. We think of that as nurturing our spiritual lives. I have a bit of a different take on spiritual schooling. St. Paul instructs that we “Pray without ceasing.” Now you may or may not be a Bible devotee, but even as a work of literature, you have to admit that book has been a best seller for years and there has to be something good behind its success. Because I view my life as a mental unfoldment, “Pray without ceasing” has a deep and wonderful meaning to me. It means: throughout every moment of your day, look for the lessons that life is trying to teach you. Those lessons are about the goodness that life is. Be grateful for the goodness in its many, many forms and give voice to your gratitude frequently. Prayer has evolved in its meaning since I was a small child. It used to mean to beg God to do something that it seemed obvious he wasn’t aware I wanted. From those days of supplication, prayer has come to mean thanksgiving for the good I’m capable of recognizing. In our back-to-school project this month, I’d like to suggest that we “Pray without ceasing.” Let’s both of us look for the good we can recognize and praise it. Make lists of the things we are grateful for in our lives and in the lives of our family and friends. Compliment our friends and associates for the good they do, the good they are, the good they look like, the joy and the beauty they embody. And then, following the recognition, be grateful. Be grateful that you recognized some good, that you must be the good that you’ve recognized because, surely, if you weren’t that good, how could you have recognized it? Be grateful that you can go and recognize the next good, and the next one, and the one after that. Gratitude and recognition are mental tools that help you to manifest more good in your life through their simple processes. I guarantee you this: if you “go back to
spiritual school” in September, and you spend your month looking for what’s good, being grateful about it, you will manifest more good in your life than ever before. Why? It’s a law. Like produces like. Willie Nelson said “Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results.” Doesn’t this just smack of that old saying “What you think is what you get?” There’s a lot of truth in those quotations, and you deserve to prove their validity to yourself. What have you learned in this back-to-school spiritual lesson? • • • • •
Spiritual means mental. Prayer is more about thanksgiving than supplication. Recognition of the good fosters more good. Gratitude for the recognition brings us up a grade spiritually. Like produces like is a law.
And you thought you were all done with school! Have a wonderful September.
Pat Matson uses the education she’s received, the experiences she’s enjoyed, the lessons Life has taught her along with a deep-seated sense of spirituality, and a passion to share her understanding to help women who struggle with bodily issues. To contact Pat and find out more about your own World of Within and to achieve self-love and selfacceptance through Pat’s tips and resources, email patm@magnifyyou.com
The Art of Meditation for Children As the summer draws to a close and the school holidays finish, it is worth thinking about what ways we can help our children progress in life and what other techniques they can learn to add to their skills as they prepare for the world after school. Such a technique or aid is meditation. It is becoming increasingly more popular for adults to start meditation and to use it every day, and most are grateful for the benefits of such a practice. But what about also teaching the technique to children and letting them experience the benefits? It is a fantastic skill to have for life in general and also great to have for school life. Meditation is the art of calming the mind, to heighten awareness,
stillness and relaxation in the person. There are many benefits to calming the mind in relation to children. When the mind is calm it is not constantly moving from one thing to the next. Just like an adult, a child’s mind will want to wander to the next topic, although not as frequently as an adult. With meditation the mind learns to focus on one thing at a time, this is beneficial for concentration and the child is able to work on one topic at a time and put in 100% effort each time. This will assist their school work and get better end results. Meditation advocates a more relaxed attitude to life; it increases the ability to let things go and to
appreciate the present. This ability will aid the child being able to cope in difficult situations as they grow older and to generally have a more enjoyable view of life. The more we can appreciate and be grateful for, the more we will receive according to the law of attraction. Our reactions and experiences as an adult are formed by how our childhood was, so the more relaxed and confident a child can be and through meditation can learn to be, the more relaxed and confident the adult will be. This enhanced relaxed attitude will lead to the child living a less stressful life in later years and so not getting a lot of health problems related to stress.
With any visualisation, you must make it as real as you can, so think of colours, sounds and feelings which come up; guide the child by talking them through it first of all and then let them try their own. Always speak to them afterwards about their visualisation and what they thought of, to make sure it has been a positive experience. Older children can also learn how to visualise and work through their own situations in their mind. They may also like to try deep breathing techniques which are especially good for the relaxation part of meditation and meditating on a positive image. The deep breathing meditation could just be you counting them while they inhale and then counting while they exhale. Make the exhalation counts longer to relax them more and prepare the mind for the meditation. The link between certain health problems, such as hypertension, headaches, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) - to name just a few ailments, and stress is welldocumented. So the less stress an individual has moving through life, the less stress-related ailments they’re likely to suffer from. The enhanced confidences due to the meditative practice will also greater aid the child in terms of their confidence in themselves and their abilities. The more confidence they have, the more they will achieve. With the confidence in our abilities comes the confidence to live to our values. When a child meditates they are more likely to know themselves better, know their values and have the confidence to make value-driven choices in later life. I think the above benefits are more than enough to get children started with some meditation, but there are varying degrees to the
meditation with the age and ability of the child. If your child is very young and you are looking to help them build confidence for school, make the meditative practice fun and like playing. Get them to imagine themselves moving in a scene like a story and you have a visualisation meditation for them! If there are certain things which are worrying them, like starting school or making new friends after a move into a different area, get them to imagine (visualise) the new situation with themselves making friends and being able to do the schoolwork. Once things have been visualised in the mind, it is likely that they will become reality. We are what our thoughts are made up of, so if they can ‘think’ themselves into the situation, it will become their reality.
The positive image meditation is similar to the visualisation in that they should visualise the image to be as real as possible and think of colours, sounds and feelings. These are just a few techniques for meditating with a child as they prepare to be back at school and maybe starting a new school. These will help them increase their self-confidence and see them progress in life and with a life skill which will prepare them for their future. If you do have any comments, questions or meditations to share, please contact me at bindis@magnifyyou.com. I look forward to hearing from you.
Bindi Shah is an inspirational life coach who runs meditation courses and workshops from Saltdean, England. She created the ‘Live The Life You Dream Of…’ programme which combines her background in Ayurveda, Life Coaching, and Meditation to help people achieve their dreams and desires while enhancing their physical and emotional well-being. Contact Bindi at bindis@magnifyyou.com
Mission Accomplished - Back to school fun for Families It’s back to school time, Yes indeed! How exciting for us all! Be happy when talking about this school year with your children, and design your own personal “Mission Statements.” “Back to School,” is a great time of year, it presents a great opportunity for us parents to bond with our children, and set a home course in motion too! Why not “set the course” with your children this year, and post those mission statements up, and go back to discuss them during the year, to see how it’s going and offer guidance, praise or a shoulder as a family after school back at home! I did this with my family and decided to share my children’s mission statements… ***** “My Mother was contemplating a “Back to School” project for her three children, and asked us to contribute. That got me to thinking, as the oldest son, if my life was a Best Selling Book series, my Mother, and the world at large - would understand me better. I’d have a voice! Because, although we are influenced by our parents, and I love mine (we kids have a special “angel” dad as our Mom is a widow), I am also an individual and I am becoming an independent adult! It’s time for me to do my own Book…this is my mission … My WAY! (I plan to do a lot more living so there will definitely be sequels!) Here is what the outline would look like at this point in my journey by: Michael Frederick My Working Title: Judge not, lest you be judged Introduction- All we are is dust in the wind, so be the best damned block of dust you can.
Ch. 4- I don’t argue if I know I’m right, so I want to hear what you have to say Ch. 5- Even if the world may never understand me, I will do my best to understand the world Book 3 Ch. 1 - Anyone can do it If you are quasi-confused as to why I chose my mission statement to be a book outline that is because: A) An actual book would be too long, and: B) I figured in the sprit of my MOM making her life an open book (my Mom is a best selling Author) I may as well do the same with my outlook on life. I see a mission statement as a miniature constitution, so to speak. In other words, an incarnation of the philosophy one is entirely subservient to. I wrote my mission statement on the premises of the philosophies, and truths I grasp from life. Every chapter has a significant cornerstone to how I live. The introduction titled “All we are Dust in the Wind” (really good song by the eagles also) signifies what I said earlier about the fact I wrote this mission statement with philosophies I grasp from life. For me to say that I am promoting the one and only truth, and that I really know how everything works, well I guess I would have to be God to do that wouldn’t I? Not to communicate incorrectly, but with the universe, being so vast, and even just our planet being so vast, I don’t pretend that I do know everything. My mother was having second thoughts about even putting this mission statement in her “back to school” story. Not because it was incoherent, sloppy, or poorly written (well you be the judge), but because there was a terrible, terrible miscommunication.
Book 1 Ch. 1- Life is what I make it to be. I’ll make it good Ch. 2- I want to earn my gift of life Ch. 3- No obstacle is too great Ch. 4- I have the power to change Ch. 5- I can’t change anyone, no one can change me Book 2 Ch. 1- I’m not the only person here Ch. 2- I’m working to make the world better for everyone, not just me. Ch. 3- I’m not working against people to prove them wrong, I’m working with them to make things right
I think so far as mission statements go we may have our own personal ones (unlike a corporation for example that has to make a public one), so we understand what we want to say to ourselves, but others reading it (as my MOM and I learned in this exercise) may misconstrue what we want to say. So she asked me to “rework” my words, which seemed weird at first, but now makes sense, since I am sharing my mission statement with you the reader - not just “notes to myself”. Guess we gotta be careful with communication, and being understood.
Perhaps I should have started by telling you that the mission statement above is NOT the original draft, but I feel it is only fair to say that I was NEVER trying to communicate any different message, although it could have come across that way to some. This has proven to be a very interesting exercise as a result, with a great lesson attached. Just like a real book… with its humble beginnings in rough form then purification and edit…Below is a copy of the first rough draft.
yourself or package the goods … so to speak, you can be really shooting yourself in the foot. Ouuuch, I happen to like my big size 12 feet…. (Lots to aim at). So the way I see it… Life is a bit of a metaphor … If the gun is loaded… and you’ve cocked it, don’t swing wildly, be careful and only take aim at those targets you really want to hit! That’s a “Back to the books/school” motto I want to live by. Michael Frederick, Son – Age 17
Working Title: You Be the Judge…
*****
Introduction - All we are is dust in the wind
About me - Ryan’s Write up on His Shield
Book 1
I am an Aries as so is my sister and therefore I placed a ram on my shield.
Ch. 1- Life is your own fault Ch. 2- Too many people don’t do jack to earn life Ch. 3- Whining never helped Gandhi Ch. 4- If you don’t like your life, change it Ch. 5- No one can change you so don’t change others
Book 2 Ch. 1- You’re not the only person here Ch. 2- If only everyone worked to make the world better for everyone, not just in their own image Ch. 3- If you’re just thinking in terms of black and white, right and wrong, you’re not really thinking Ch. 4- How/why are you arguing if you know you’re right (who are you really kidding?)
I was also born in San Francisco, California in the year of the ram (1991): in addition to that, my Dad’s favorite animal is the ram. Moreover, I put a crescent on it because I am the second born son. I could have chosen to place the first born son sign because I am adopted, and I was my birth mother’s first born. I selected a silver stripe because that’s my older brother’s (Fred’s) favorite color. The reason I colored the rest of the shield blue is because that’s my mom’s favorite color. My shield is based upon my family because they are the most important aspect of my life. Before asking us to write our “back to School” mission statement our Mom explained to us the meanings of the words: “Mission” and “Statement”. She said we could portray our statement any way we could imagine. I have done mine as one of my passions, Sports.
Book 3
If my life were exceptional plays: If my life were plays I would want to be those plays that stun and amaze those who watch - the plays where the impossible occurs. I’d want to be those plays that put everything on the line.
Ch. 1- You’re not the only one who can do it.
Why would someone want to be mediocre? Why would
Ch. 5- The world’s not meant to serve or understand you
Okay, so perhaps the first draft did sound like it had more of an axe to grind over being someone’s “mission statement” to live a good life. The irony is that the rough draft had no different meaning (to me) from the final draft. I bring this up, because there is a very important theme to all of this. If there is one thing that a good business person knows, bad marketing can ruin a good product. Even if you are the most brilliant, and capable person in the world, if you have the greatest product/idea ever … But when you “take it out there,” if you don’t know how to express
they want to be those who step down from the challenge? Because they are afraid of what would happen if they fail. They’re scared to step up and be a leader for a team or a company. If you want to succeed like football star “Jerry Rice” or Billionaire “Bill Gates” you have to step up and take control of your life. I want to grow to the person in this life, a game of life, “Hall of Famer” – a player who challenged himself to the extremes of victory. I want to be a winner and strive for excellence; I want to be the man, who takes on challenges, but I must be true to my plays and play fair, or they will catch me on the replay. Even if I don’t succeed, I want to be the person who attempted the impossible. Ryan– Son – Age 14 ***** Hi, it’s Jinji. My Mommy asked me to make a mission statement in my own creative way for a “back to school” family project. Then she sat down with my brothers and me and read us definitions of the two words, definitions of the words as they apply to a mission statement. She said we could do them any way we want, at first I planted a flower and put fairy dust around it and on my pillow so that I could ask a fairy to help me. (They really do exist if you believe in them, and I do.) When I slept I got an idea and when I woke up I started on my life mission plan for my Mommy and our family, and me too! Here it goes: If my life were a quiz, I want to always pick the right answers so I get a good score and fall into the right spot. If only I ate an apple a day, then: a) I would be healthy b) I would be full c) I would marry a doctor If I ran like the wind: a) I would soar with the clouds b) I would need new sneakers c) I would be invisible There’s a right side to the day, too: a) Where there’s one thing, there’s another - so be careful b) What goes up must come down c) All the good stuff is left out when we are worry warts You resemble: a) A button b) Cute as a button c) A button hole If I had a sweet tooth: a) Why would I need candy
b) All the boys would kiss it (YUK!) c) It would get sucked up and disappear from my spit at some point If you picked A’s to all you are in the top range: you are optimistic, fun and clever – all that stuff. What’s your phone number or e-mail address? Are you on face book? We like people like you, you might win a contest with us. More Bs: You are a silly willy, but then Willy Wonka made chocolate….so you’re cool. More Cs: You didn’t take this seriously. You need to get a life, maybe you know my brothers (just kidding).
From America to Australia and Madrid to Mexico, inspired audiences are leaping to their feet after hearing LuAn Mitchell's message of genuine hope, unwavering faith and personal commitment to action. LuAn is a woman who has overcome adversity on every front, and she can teach you to do the same. Her life is a story of tragedy and triumph, emerging every time to reach the pinnacle of business, family and personal success. Contact LuAn at luanm@magnifyyou.com
The Dorm Room ~ A Sentence or a Retreat? We all have our moment of truth when we move our belongings to a new location. What once looked great in one home may need to be reworked or recycled in the next. When downsizing or moving to a temporary small space, the choices are even harder. Don’t lower your expectations because you are going to be living in a dorm room or a single.
Let’s explore a few sections that can make a huge impact:
how it looks in various areas of the room.
Walls
Go bigger or smaller depending on the furniture arrangement near or under it.
In a dorm room scenario, the walls can be a major component to assure great style. What walls can do for a room are often overlooked, but should be of
Turn the pieces of paper landscape and portrait orientation to make sure which is more desirable. Repeat for groupings.
Seize the opportunity to only live with what you love. It is quite a singular experience. It is possible to celebrate your choices beautifully and expressively in a small space. Sometimes it is even easier, as the impact is greater. The same basic design principles are at play. Color, scale, texture, and suitability create the framework for style. Decide on how you want to live. Decipher how you want to feel in the space. Do you want to feel refreshed, relaxed, energized, glamorous, tailored, tropical, or exotic? These are all achievable; you just have choose which suits you best.
Don’t have money for art? Find a gorgeous line drawing in Clip Art, a Dover Book, etc. and blow it up to the desired pre-measured scale. Hand color it with watercolor colored pencils, and you have expressive and individualistic art. An inexpensive way to frame it is to get some wall paper glue and or adhesive spray and affix it to foam core. Make a fabric wainscoting if you would like some soft style. Run the fabric up 36” to 42” inches on the wall which can be flat, pleated or on to
As in any design scheme, the floor, walls, soft furnishings, tablescapes, accessories, all complete the picture. Let’s look at some style options that are easily achievable and won’t break your budget if you are moving into a dorm room.
primary importance if you want to punctuate your space with style intention. Depending on your personal taste, here are some design avenues which support a stylish backdrop. General rule of thumb; the larger the scale, the more striking. Don’t be shy, be expressive. Scale your art large or make a large grouping. Cut pieces of paper to the desired size and see
rings. If running it flat, almost upholstered in feeling, it can be dressed up with nail heads or stud it diagonally with fabric covered buttons if you like. The fabric can be tailored looking solid, a botanical print, a stripe, really anything that speaks to you. Frame or affix Oriental paper scrolls to create a linear horizontal
canvas rolls, paint or stamp the details on to complete the look. To add easy glamour to your room, just make a gilded or silvered cornice board out of paper, foam core or canvas. Paint it silver, bronze or a burnished gold and place at the top of the wall, just below the ceiling for an instant uplift. For a chic look, leave it plain. If you want a more historical look, add spaced rosettes in the same painted finish. Tabletops Use naturalistic items in groups, such as shells, minerals, rocks, glass or pottery shards.
flow. If you have two or three to create a grouping one on top of each other adds a chic look. If you are seeking some architectural interest where there is none, cut out arches, columns, cornices, or any large scale detail on to heavy white paper and paint it then apply it to the wall, for instant architecture. Another suggestion is to take a line drawing and blow it up on the paper and have a printed cornice or column as well. If you have
Silver, wicker, painted, or just about any tray is a great way to organize and show case a few items on a table top or counter. The items are confined to an area, so it reduces clutter and you choose more judiciously. Don’t forget scale and height, there is the geometry of design. Branches of pussy willow, in black or white, tall branches in tall vases add scale and sense of proportion. Skirt a table if it is really not to your taste. Decide on if you want a tailored look or not. Pleat or create shirring and affix it to the apron with Velcro. If a table top is really in bad shape, you can top it with marble or stone squares, or glass tiles. This is remarkably inexpensive and can look great in a pinch. Travertine, marble, and slate can be purchased at very low cost in 12” x 12”. 18” x 18” and 24” x 24” squares.
Using the most beautiful bowl you can afford, or a clear glass bowl in a beautiful shape, fill these with multiples of these items for a sophisticated yet organic touch.
Simply put it together, or go to a hardware store and buy a mixture that can be used as adhesive and grout together.
Fill tall glass jars, bottles or urns with clean fresh leaves and foliage, add water and put the lid on tightly. The leaves stay green for months and have a fresh splendor to them.
Get a heavy board the same size as the table top and use the adhesive/grout mixture to lay the stone. If you don’t want to cut, make the top size an even dimension to what the stone will be.
A few well chosen pieces create a statement. Don’t use the space for something you think is just “OK”. If you don’t love it, don’t have it out.
If you buy the stone at Home Depot for instance, they will cut the pieces for 24 cents each. Bathrooms If you have a less than perfect bathroom cabinet, don’t despair. You can skirt it with outdoor fabric that you can throw in the washing machine. There are many ways to affix it, but the easiest it will Velcro. It can be laid, straight, gathered or pleated, or on rings.
Back To School Specials, What to Buy and Keeping Your Family Safe! I have of course been asked many times this summer about buying a computer before school starts. The two questions always asked are, are laptops better than a regular PC and are Mac’s worth buying? Here is my opinion on those two questions. If the cabinet is OK, just replace the hardware, it can make a huge difference in the overall visual feel. If the mirror is just too boring – don’t despair – molding can be purchased at any home improvement store, have them miter it and you have a newly framed mirror. Paint or stain the molding however you like. Another way to get a mirror to stand out is to create a frame out of gorgeous seashells.
Are laptops better than regular PC’s to buy? It totally depends on what you are using it for. I definitely recommend a laptop for students that are going off to college. The most important thing is to make sure that you buy one with enough hard drive space. I also recommend that you get one with wireless capability. A few things to watch out for are the durability rating (which means that there are no problems opening and shutting the lid and it won’t fall apart on you), battery life and the power cable; make sure it is not going to wear out quickly.
Simply glue beautiful seashells on mesh and then glue that to cardboard and then Velcro it on to the mirror.
If you are just looking to upgrade the family computer, then I recommend sticking to the desktop PC and upgrading your monitor to a flat screen. Monitors have come down in price a lot and it frees up space on your desk.
When you leave (move out), remove the cardboard and use a good cleaning agent and the mirror will be restored to its original state.
Right now all major computer/electronic stores are having fabulous back-to-school sales. I’ve looked around and everything is at very reasonable prices. With the economy being bad, they have no choice but to pass savings back down to us, the consumer, in order to get more sales.
Michelle Viggiano is an entrepreneur juggling three diverse companies spanning the luxury goods arena to the environmental services sector. Contact Michelle with your household and environment friendly questions: michellev@magnifyyou.com
The biggest problem with buying a PC, which people don’t realize, is that unless you specifically ask for it, you will not get Microsoft Office. This is something that students, especially ones going to college, will need. I recommend that you search for it at your local Walmart or Sam’s Club. You can also check your Colleges and Universities; as they will sometimes have it at a discounted price for their students. All your student really needs is Microsoft Word and Excel so you will not need to buy the full version. Are Mac’s worth buying? I know so many happy Mac users that I can’t say no, even if I wanted to. The biggest thing I’ve noticed about Mac users is that most of them are Graphic Artists of some kind. So if your child has that talent, then by all
means get a Mac. Otherwise it really is a personal choice, which computer are you going to be more comfortable with. There is no right or wrong answer; it’s honestly a choice of preference. They both are good!
Kids Saving Money – Get Them Started on the Path of Financial Independence
One more thing I want to address as we start the new school year is internet safety. Make sure you talk to your child about this. I have read too many times in the paper where children have been taken advantage of online by strangers. As parents, we can’t assume that our children will act responsibly while on the internet. We have to step up and set some ground rules. Monitor, to some extent, what your kids are looking at online and discuss it with them. Be careful letting your kids use Facebook, Twitter and Myspace. I was working on a friend’s son’s laptop who was 13 and his background picture was of a teenage girl in her bikini top. I asked him where he got the picture and he said she was a friend he goes to school with and she had it as her Facebook picture. She was only 12 years old!!! I about died, 12 is way too young to be posting sexy pictures on the internet. The pedophiles will have a field day and let’s try to avoid that at all costs!!!!!!!! Make sure you check your kid’s pc’s every once in a while, look at what they are looking at and always have their passwords to their accounts, just in case of an emergency. There is too much on the internet that is not appropriate for our children. We still have to be careful what they are doing, and it’s important to monitor them until they learn what is out there and they gain the maturity needed to make healthy choices for themselves. Remember using the computer is fun so go have fun with your family. I know some of my good laughs have been with my family around the computer sharing videos on Youtube.
Kids get the idea of spending money. Nearly all of us parents and kids alike - are surrounded by the opportunity to spend money every day. Kids see Mom and Dad spend money at the grocery store, on gas or on going out to eat. They are also plenty of advertisements to entice them with things that every kid must have. But what about kids saving money? Are there the same options to teach them about that? In general, kids saving money doesn't seem to come as naturally to them as spending (unless you have a born saver like my daughter). Frankly, it just isn't nearly as fun to teach either. The rewards for saving do not have that same immediate gratification as a new toy (which is the point, of course) and it's not nearly as entertaining. Complicating it all is direct deposit and the fact that most savings deposits don't require a trip to the bank for you to teach your kids about savings. What is a parent to do? Start slowly. Get a fun bank - piggy or otherwise. One of my favorites is having a child paint their own ceramic bank. We have local paint and glaze stores with banks ready to paint...plus all the paints and stencils to go with it. Then they fire and glaze the masterpiece for you to pick up later. If your child is old enough to finger paint, they can do this (with varying degrees of help from Mom or Dad!). Encourage your child to put part of their money into their personal bank. Don't worry about getting to the "real" bank just yet. Kids need to be able to see, feel and count their money at the outset. It is theirs after all - and there is a sense of pride that goes with that.
Ressa Kinnear is a self taught PC Technician. In her determination to crash and then reload as many computers as needed, she learned all she could about what makes computers work. Contact Ressa with your computer-related questions at ressak@magnifyyou.com
You can also start a family bank or money jar. Parents can then put their coins into it at the end of each day. While it's probably not the majority of the family savings, it still helps kids see that saving money is something that everyone in the family does.
3 Ways to Stop Teens and Their Parents' Exam Panic
Start talking about going to the bank and how money gets there and comes back to you - each time you visit the bank. This is true even if your visits are limited to ATM trips. Help your child understand that you can get money out of the bank if you put it in first by saving it. If your child is older, you can start talking about loans, but that is probably best left for the future...one step at a time on our road to money education! When your child seems to understand how "your" bank is different from "their" bank, consider opening a savings account for them. You will likely have your name on it as well since your child is a minor, but the bank is usually good about helping with all those details. One key here is not to rush it. If your little Warren Buffet has all kinds of money that just isn't safe in the house, then you may want to move along faster. But, generally, there is no need to rush this part of the process. It is much more important that they grasp how to save rather than where to save. With kids, saving money is a great step for their financial future. Getting started down that path now is an investment that will pay off for years to come. Jennifer Peek is the editor of http://www.money-and-kids.com the comprehensive guide to teaching children about money. More information on kids money basics can be found at http://www.money-and-kids.com/teachingchildren-about-money.html Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_P eek
As a parent you are usually more worried about your teens examination performance than he or she is. This is only a natural feeling, since you have their interest at heart and you want the best for them. I am here to share and show you how to put a stop to all that worrying and rather help them achieve their best results. Let us look at the three ways to help our teens Reprogramme Their Mindset: You should know by now how your teen's mind is programmed. If their minds are twisted, contorted and have no interest in their studies then you definitely must help, to them to readjust their thinking in the right way. You need to reaffirm them on what an angel you thought they were, when they were first placed in your arms in the labour ward, how they lit up your whole world and just how much you knew they were going to be the best at everything. Let them know how much faith you have in them and their abilities, that you trust them fully and your trust is irrelevant of what they have done in the past. However if your teen's mind is already wired in the right direction, then that is half of the work done. The other half will be to let them know, that they can leave their foot print on planet earth. Nutritional Health: Parents as well as their teens need to know that, there is a direct link between what you eat and your brain's performance. When we eat too much junk, our bodies and especially our brains begin to rebel.
Most of the fatty oils that we find in our foods are bad for the effective functioning of our brains. The oils that the brain needs are the essential oils found in nuts, like cashews, pumpkin seeds, macadamias, Walnuts and most of the nuts that you know, in their natural states.
The Tantra Tip of the Month Keep Your Chakras Energized and Open
Then again let us look at some other foods that our teens indulge in and their effect on their health. Any food that has been over processed examples, are white breads, white rice, white sugar. These deplete your energy level after eating and make you feel tired so you do not have enough energy to study. To boost your energy levels, eat less of the over processed and eat more brown or whole meal bread, brown rice and sugar just to mention a few less processed foods. Also instead of eating sweets and crisps, have some raisins and fruits when feeling like eating for fun. Make sure to drink lots of water and stay away from carbonated drinks they contain high levels of sugar. Physical Health: Exercise of any form will help release tension in the body and increase blood flow to the brain. This will help you take more oxygen into the brain cells therefore stimulating the brain and increasing your ability to concentrate and absorb what you are learning. When you decide you want to study, first take a few minutes to exercise, this could be jogging, dancing, skipping, any exercise you enjoy doing. Learn to take 30 minutes break sections and keep fit during the break. Discipline yourself to unrelenting study, you deserve the best in your exam and life as a whole. Visit http://www.successfulteens.co.uk for your free gift and learn more. Laura Lyseight has been a source of inspiration and great influence in the lives of many youngsters both students and children alike. Her burning ambition to see teens find and reach their full potential has driven her to prolifically write books to challenge, empower and enrich their lives beyond their own expectations. She recalls times in her life as a teen where she wanted to be the best, but lacked the exposure, especially exposure to the world of business. Now a serial entrepreneur a private tutor and coach, a best selling author and a successful network marketer, Laura is mentoring teens to leadership and helping them create their own success stories. For her, success is not just in one area of life, but reflects in your spiritual, academic, financial, social and emotional life. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laura_Lyseight
In the West, we learn about the body through the study of anatomy and physiology. In the East, there is a tradition going back thousands of years that recognizes the body is more than flesh and blood- it is made up of energy. In India, this energy is called “prana” and these energy centers are called chakras. “Chakra” is a Sanskrit word, meaning wheel or vortex. The chakras are important in the practice of Tantra because they keep your energy vibrant and they are involved in expanding consciousness. There are 7 primary chakra centers along the length of the spine, running from the root to the crown. These centers affect the flow of energy in all areas of the body. When the chakras are open, there is a feeling of aliveness and a sense of well-being. If a chakra becomes blocked, there is a lack of energy and a feeling of contraction or tension may arise. Blocks often cause challenges in the arena of life that the chakra influences. Some of the benefits of keeping your chakras open and energized are increased health, sexual vitality, mental clarity and inner peace. Let’s review the 7 chakras. (Note, in SkyDancing Tantra we put sexuality in the first chakra instead of the second chakra.)
Chakra Location
Color / Element
Endocrine Gland
Quality
Red / Earth
Ovaries / Testes
Abundance / Security / Orgasm
2) Lower Belly
Orange / Water
Adrenals
Balance / Flow / Emotions
3) Solar Plexus
Yellow / Fire
Pancreas
Power / Manifestation / Will
4) Heart
Green / Air
Thymus
Love / Compassion / Intimacy
5) Throat
Blue / Sound
Thyroid
Truth / Creativity / Communication
6) Third Eye
Violet / Light
Pineal
Insight / Intuition / Visions
White / Thought
Pituitary
Consciousness /Awakening
1) Root / Perineum
7) Crown
Each chakra has its own unique energy and wisdom. By scanning them regularly, you become familiar with their qualities. To scan your chakras, go within and come to a place of quiet attention. Allow your awareness to rest in each chakra. See what you discover. Does it feel open, closed or somewhere in between? Scanning your chakras daily is a good way to notice if they are blocked, out of balance or need recharging. The following practice will help you to release blocked energy and recharge your chakras: 1) Stand with your knees hip-width apart and slightly bent. 2) Inhale deeply through your mouth and allow your belly to expand. Exhale through an open mouth while making the sound, Ahhh. 3) Begin the Pelvic Rock: Allow the pelvis to rotate freely while keeping the knees bent. As you inhale, rock the tailbone back, creating an arch in the lower back. As you exhale, tuck the tail bone under, flattening the lower back. Master these 3 steps before moving on. 4) Add the PC Pump: Inhale, squeeze the pelvic floor muscles as if you are holding in your urine. Exhale, allow the pelvic floor to relax. 5) Once you are comfortable with Steps 1-4, you will explore each chakra one-by-one, starting at the root and moving to the crown. Take your time with each chakra: Follow Steps 1-4 and allow sound, breath and movement to help you feel into the chakra. Notice the quality of energy there. Is there tension or a feeling of stuck energy? This is a sign that the chakra is blocked. If you feel a block, declare, “I release this block for the best and highest good of all beings.� Allow any tension to melt. Continue until the area feels open and energized. If the chakra feels open right away, then reenergize it with Steps 1-4 for one to several minutes. 6) Begin by focusing on the root chakra- the area between the genitals and the anus. Repeat Step 5 with each chakra.
7) Next, focus on your lower belly, the area below the navel. 8) Move up to the solar plexus, the area between the navel and the diaphragm. 9) Focus on the heart and repeat the process. The heart is the bridge between the lower and upper chakras. Once it is open and energized, allow yourself to feel the energy pulsing from your root to your heart. Feel the connection between the first four chakras. 10) Next, move up to the throat chakra. Here, it is often helpful to vocalize. 11) Focus on the Third Eye, the area between and slightly above the eye brows. 12) Now focus on the Crown, the area at the very top of the head. Once the crown is open, allow yourself to feel the energy flowing from your heart to your crown. Then, connect all the chakras, from root to crown. See yourself as a rainbow bridge of light, connecting the Earth and Sky. 13) This is a great daily practice. Keeping the chakras open and balanced is a powerful Tantric technique that will enhance your health, vitality and well-being. It can also be done prior to making love and helps to increase the length, power and intensity of orgasms in both men and women. If you want to learn more about chakras, I recommend reading The Art of Everyday Ecstasy by Margot Anand or go to my resources page at I http://www.tantraforawakening.com/resources.html. hope you enjoy the benefits of opening your chakras. I look forward to hearing what you discover. Please write me at crystalm@magnifyyou.com. Blessings! Crystal Dawn Morris, is a Certified SkyDancing Tantra Teacher and the founder of Tantra for Awakening. Her classes, workshops and coaching sessions give people practical tools for creating an ecstatic life. She offers Tantra workshops and coaching sessions to individuals and couples in the USA and Canada. Her next series of courses in Phoenix, AZ run from August through November 2009. She also teaches a year-long course for Tantra Teachers. You can read her blog at www.TantraGal.Blogspot.com . Learn more, www.TantraForAwakening.com.
The Face of Spinal Muscular Atrophy:
Logan’s Story
Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) is the number 1 genetic killer of children under 2. 1 and 38 people are a carriers, it is not bias to gender, race or ethnicity. Both parents have to be carriers and there is a 1 in 4 chance of having a child with SMA. Logan was our 1 in 4. Most people don’t know that SMA is in their family until a child, like Logan, is born and diagnosed with the illness. The first two years for a family of SMA is a battle not only for the life of the child but a major learning process for parents who have never faced this. It is about discovering how the disease process will affect your child individually and how to keep your child as healthy as possible with the obstacles you will face each day. Children with SMA have compromised immune systems making it harder to fight off infections. Most have little to no ability to swallow which makes it easy to aspirate on as little as their own saliva. With their weakened and atrophied respiratory function it makes it hard for them just to take a single breath.
Most children with SMA Type I, like Logan, need a ventilator to assist with breathing; suction and cough machines to remove the normal secretions they don’t have the ability to manage. Children with SMA1 have tubes put in their belly to assist with feeding them daily as well. Multiple medications, breathing treatments and chest percussion therapy (CPT) are simply part of the daily routine. On May 11, 2009, Logan’s battle with SMA came to an end. This is Logan’s story and in telling it, I hope that it will educate many about this genetic disease. It is heartbreaking to say a child has been lost at only 4 years old, but Logan surpassed every expectation he was ever given by statistics or the doctors that treat these children on a regular basis. Logan’s “superstar” status began when he was six months old and we walked through the doors of Phoenix Children’s Hospital for the first time. No one could help but fall in love with this little boy with the biggest brown eyes that could speak to you more than his mouth would ever be able to. It didn’t matter who met Logan, the first thing you would notices were “those eyes”.
Logan had a light in him that could not be ignored. At one, he became the poster child for Phoenix Children’s Hospital, and just a few months later had the chance to be part of the hospitals “Radio-a –Thon”; and as his parents, we were given the opportunity to share Logan’s story. Just a few weeks later, Logan got to shine again, this time on TV for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Telethon.
At 6 months of age Logan was not progressing the way he should, and we knew something wasn’t right and decided to take him in to Phoenix Children’s Hospital. It was during this visit that we were given his diagnosis and were told that they did not expect him to live past 7 months, let alone the 2 year mark for this illness. Logan was in the hospital for over a month. While in the hospital Logan was given multiple IV medications for infections, surgery for his feeding tube; and he stopped breathing when trying to recover from surgery. Once Logan had the appropriate equipment and treatment plan, we were given the option to either put Logan in a children’s nursing home or take him back to our home. Leaving Logan was never an option. We took Logan home, loving and caring for him each day, always wondering which day might be the last.
Logan could not speak or move, but to everyone that met him, Logan had a way of telling you what was on his mind. He was very strong-willed, even though his limitations from SMA may have affected his body, it did not affect his mind. Logan’s battle with SMA began at birth, although the affects of SMA did not begin to show until he was 3 months old. Our first indication that something was not “right” was when we noticed he wasn’t eating or meeting normal milestones for a 3 month old and this lead us to take him to see a doctor. We were told he was a picky eater and he was “low tone”, so we were sent to physical therapy and nothing more.
We had many family and friends visiting during these days, fearing the worst, but hoping for the best for this strong little boy who had already overcome so much in such a short time. We made sure to celebrate his birthday with every month that passed. Logan enjoyed a birthday party every month. We took Logan on a trip to Washington, where I am from, to visit with his Grammy, Papa, and Uncle Bubby.
We had minor speed bumps during this time but managed to not go back to the hospital for 18 months. When we did finally have to go back to the hospital the doctors were amazed with Logan’s will to live. They never expected to see us back… with Logan. After leaving the hospital, a couple surgeries and illnesses later; time had literally flown and Logan was turning 2. This was just one of the many things to put in Logan’s record book. He had to receive special clearance just to fly with all of his equipment. Talk about an ordeal, we knew this may be our one and only trip to Washington. Logan flew first class and met the pilots and while in Washington, he visited fire stations and went on his very first ride in a fire truck. He also visited “behind the scenes” of the Northwest Trek Wildlife Zoo and fed and petted his very first horse. When we got back home, a big highlight for him and his Dad was going to the Cardinals vs. Steelers game in the brand new Glendale stadium; my husband is a huge Steelers fan.
After Logan hit that “dreaded” two year mark, and we were watching over him with baited breath, we welcomed Logan’s new nurse Milinda to our family and we received a donated RV to drive Logan and his best friend Kyle, who also has SMA Type I, to Disneyland. With 11 people in tow, we made it to the Disneyland Resort where we stayed in a two room suite, overlooking Disneyland. The “superstar” status showed itself, yet once again.
We had personal messages from Mickey and friends, moved to the front of the line for everything, and met Buzz Lightyear, who was Logi’s favorite character, in the Wish Room.
Our veins are a muscle and Logan’s were very small and fragile, but once his port was placed it made it much easier to manage his illnesses from home and that meant less dreaded hospital time.
Disneyland is fully accessible for their disabled patrons, and as such Logan had a lot of fun going on many rides, he ate at Goofy’s kitchen and enjoyed meeting many characters except for Cinderella.
We then had to deal with the hardest surgery where he had to have the tendon’s released in his ankles due to them being contracted so badly. Things were not done correctly at the hospital which made Logan’s recovery much harder on him than it needed to be.
When she asked him if he would be her “little prince”, he closed his eyes and said Logan’s famous “Nuh- uh”. After our whirlwind vacation it was back to Logan’s daily routines. Logan had a port-a-cath placed in his chest for easier access to deliver IV medications and draw blood.
After a slow and painful recovery, the casts came off and Logan got fitted for ankle braces. Outside of Logan’s daily routine, he was very busy with various Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) events, local Fire Departments “Fill the Boot” fundraisers, and raising awareness for SMA. On top of his busy activities as an activist for awareness and fundraising, Logan enjoyed attending live shows,
and had the opportunity to attend two Disney on Ice shows, “Monster Inc” and “The Incredibles”.
He continued to have general lung infections which led to him having to be on antibiotics.
During the Monsters Inc. show one of the monsters almost landed on Logan, which he thought was hilarious; however, Milinda and I were not as enthused. Logan definitely knew what he liked, and he did not like being disturbed from the things he enjoyed; so after jumping up to cover Logan from the falling monster, he proceeded to yell at us for blocking his view!
We would start out with medicine that went through his g-tube, but those often made him feel unwell and he had “bathroom” issues as a result of them. This often led to low potassium which put him in a little “coma”, where he would act very tired and worn out and eventually led to 24-48 hours in the PICU (pediatric intensive care). The icing on the cake was going to see Logan’s favorite, “ELMO! Live”.
Logan received IV potassium until his levels were back to normal range.
Elmo waved to Logan and pointed at him and said “I love you”. Logan received an autographed program from the little red monster himself.
Time was again flying by and before we knew it, Logan turned 3. Logan’s third year was a pretty good one, although Logan introduced us to the world of low potassium and the effects it has on you.
In May 2008, Logan became a big cousin to the new addition to our family, Nathan. Logan had been the baby for so long we had to ease him into it but being the incredibly loving boy he was, he loved Nathan at first sight. In July of 2008 we took Logan to San Diego for his Make-A-Wish trip. We were scheduled to go to the Aquarium, San Diego Zoo and Sea World.
instead of immediately treating Logan. The other option was to drive as fast as we could back home to his regular doctors. This was a scary thought because it is a long drive from San Diego back to the Phoenix Valley, and we were not sure how bad Logan was, or if he would deteriorate along the way.
It was an “interesting” trip to say the least. On our third day there, just before setting off to the zoo, there was a small earthquake in Southern California. I had felt like I was dizzy and sat down on the bed, and Milinda thought the bed was moving by itself. I joked that it felt like an earthquake and then a news flash came across the TV confirming what I had been joking. However, my husband, Chris was not convinced since he had not felt it.
We decided on the latter and made it back to the Valley and took Logan straight into the hospital where tests revealed that he had a respiratory infection.
While we were all a little surprised by the earthquake, everything in that aspect was fine; however, our trip was cut a few days short when Logan began acting like he didn’t feel well.
However, Logan pulled through, yet again, and attended his third Disney on Ice show, another favorite, “NEMO”! During the show, Logan received a kiss from the sea turtle!
He was acting more tired than usual and using his Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (Bi-Pap), which is a noninvasive ventilator, more. By Friday, we had to make the decision to either take him to a hospital in San Diego where no one knew him; and where we’d have to go through his entire medical history with strangers which could prove time-consuming
Logan was mesmerized and smiling the entire time and I am sure this was a memory he cherished just as much as we did being able to witness such happiness in his eyes. As the year progressed, Logan continued with his normal events, as well as another MDA event, Walk n’ Roll for SMA (by FSMA.org) and spending time with his family and friends.
In October 2008 Logan learned that he was to become the big brother to his twin sisters, Mikayla and Kali due in March 2009. The girls were born too early, and were here with us for only a very short time. Logan did not get to meet them in person but I’m sure he met them in his dreams. Over the Christmas holidays he got sick again, but was able to spend time with his Uncle G, Aunty Squishy, and the boys.
The suctioning and bipap were not clearing the secretions at that point. We rushed him inside hoping that coughing, treatments and suctioning in his own bed would help him to breathe on his own. After a few minutes this still wasn’t working and Logan needed more help, so we called 911. Logan was taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital, which was not the first choice as it was not a hospital equipped to deal with Logan’s special needs. He had to be inturbated in the back of the ambulance and then again in the emergency room. We almost lost him in the emergency room when his lung collapsed. Once he was on a ventilator he was breathing again. 20 minutes later, we were air lifted to Phoenix Children’s Hospital where Logan was re-inturbated again for the wrong size tube. This was his third time being inturbated in as many hours. During this process Logan’s, front teeth were almost knocked out and later had to be pulled. I thought “Wow! How much can one guy take?”
It was a tradition that Logan decorated his own Christmas tree, and this year was no exception. I took his hand and he threw the ornaments on to the tree. After we were done he would lie next to it and stare at the lights and smile. February 2009 was a busy month; he was on TV for a Phoenix Children’s Hospital pancake breakfast at IHOP. He received his LONG-awaited power chair and went to a spring training game.
During our stay we learned that Logan had tested positive AND negative for Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), which causes infection of the lungs and breathing passages. RSV kills babies and immune compromised children every year. We are still perplexed as to the test results and have never received answers. This whole situation really took a toll on Logan’s body and when we took Logan home six days later, we were not sure how severe the effects would be from this last hospital stay.
In a flash, March arrived and it was time for Logan’s 4th birthday. This time we decided to have a party at the park because I didn’t want to try to fit 100 people in the house again. Logan’s Grammy and Papa came down from Washington to celebrate with us and Logan had a really good day in his new ‘big boy’ lounger bed. It truly was a fun filled day with family and friends and a red Elmo cupcake cake. The topping was when his very own fire truck showed up for the occasion. It was about week or so later that Logan began to feel unwell but nothing could be pinpointed. St. Patrick’s Day was not a lucky day for us at all, we took him to see his doctor and Logan was just not acting like himself. Tests were all clear but Logan had a lot of very thick secretions that couldn’t be explained. On the way home, and literally turning the corner to our house, Milinda told me Logan was not breathing.
Immediately, things were noticeably different; he was on his bipap consistently and was very panicked when you had to take him off for any reason. He needed to be
coughed with oxygen just to keep his oxygen from falling too low, and he was getting meds to help calm his nerves.
the stairs where the characters walked down. Every character came and said “Hello” to Logan and gave him a hug as they walked back and forth.
Two weeks after coming home, he began showing some signs of progress and what we knew to be normal for him.
In true Logan fashion, he threw a fit during intermission and I had to bribe him with a really cool Elmo hat to get him to settle down until the show started again.
We bribed him with Elmo tickets to feel better if he took his 4th year birthday pictures with as little issues as possible.
When we left the theater that day, I had no idea it would be one of our last “best “days.
He did very well taking his pictures, and was being his typical “ham self” for the camera; he even had pictures taken with one of his dogs. A couple weeks later we went to see “Elmo’s Green Thumb”, and it was a great day for Logan, his nurse Milinda, and me. My husband had to work and, unfortunately, had to miss the show. We went backstage and met Grover before the show, and we had front row seats which were right in front of
Two weeks later Logan started to feel unwell, and it was not the normal “not feeling well” which we were so used to. By the end of the week he came off of his bipap for only a short time in the afternoon, but wore out very easily. On Saturday he didn’t want to get out of bed at all and was only awake for a few hours in total.
As Sunday approached he was only awake for about an hour, he was not processing his food, and his belly just kept getting bigger.
We took him out of bed and rocked him in his chair in the living room. With family and friends gathered we played him music and told him stories.
While his lungs were clear earlier in the day, by the evening they sounded as if there was barely any air getting through. He seemed very agitated and uncomfortable.
Logan was a fighter his whole life, right up to the very end, he kept fighting even when he had nothing left.
About 9:00 pm, his pediatrician called as she had a bad feeling about the situation. She called Hospice to come out to help us and stay in contact with Logan’s doctor for as long as necessary. To us it seemed like Logan was already gone. He was not opening his eyes at all and not responding to talking or touch. Together with his doctor, we decided that Logan’s body was giving out and he just didn’t have the strength to fight anymore. We gave him some medicine to help him relax as he began to slip away slowly.
It wasn’t until I cradled him in my arms and told him, “Baby, it’s ok; you don’t have to fight anymore. Go be with your sisters”, that Logan finally took his last breaths in my arms. Just after 1:00 am on May 11, 2009 Logan’s battle with SMA came to an end here on this earth. Even though Logan may not be here where we can see him, we will always continue to fight his battle for SMA. As Logan’s Mom I knew I had the fight of my life when Logan was diagnosed with SMA, I knew I could do it as long as Logan wanted to do it. He was the one who taught me to fight. The hardest part for me was knowing when to stop fighting. I always said I would “fight as long as he wanted to”, but when it came down to it, I still wanted to fight for my son.
You know when it is “that time” but you are never really ready and still don’t know how to stop as a “Mommy”, you are not programmed that way. So now I will not only fight for my son who is not with us anymore, I will fight for all of his friends that have SMA.
There are many different ways you can help fight SMA; you can donate to www.FSMA.org or www.MDA.org. Every November, there is a “Walk and Roll to Cure SMA” which you can donate to. Please visit Logan’s websites to learn more www.caringbridge.org/visit/logibear, or www.oursmaangels.com/logibear Shelle Harman, is “Mommy to Logan”, who will forever be 4 yrs old, and who was diagnosed with SMA I
“Thank you Logan for being our baby, you only made our lives better by being in it. You have made our family stronger, wiser and grateful to life in general. You have shown us to be grateful for what we have and to not take life for granted. It is amazing how someone so little, who can’t even talk, can impact so many lives in so many different ways. You will live in our hearts forever and will always be our shining star.”
He taught us that terminal illness is not the “end”; it is just a “shortened time”.
A Beautiful Chapter of Life th
As a mother of two wonderful children I prided myself on my ability to fix OWIES with band-aids, hugs and kisses. I thought "Gosh what an easy job". When feelings were hurt I could fix them with hugs and laughter. Piece of cake, “laughter” I am good at.
Our beautiful journey with Logan began on March 4 2005.
When teenage years rolled around and with no mother of my own since the age of 11, to turn to for advice, I felt (for the most part) things went well. How much prouder can you be for both of your children to become firefighters, EMT, caretakers of others with huge hearts and compassion? Wow, what a great job we did! No more worries, they both went out on their own. One with a career the other married and very happy to a wonderful man who also became a firefighter/Paramedic.
We noticed some baby milestones had not been met but we thought that he was just developing slowly, what else could be wrong? People have babies every day and families over react. It will be fine.
Several years went by when the phone call came and the news, "Mom, I am pregnant"! “Oh my gosh!” I thought, “Does it get any better than this?”
3-4-5 monumental! How many people can claim a birth date like that?
I will never forget the bravery I saw on the day Logan was diagnosed. Papa and I flew down to be with our daughter, Shelle for the Neurology appointment. We all walked in with somewhat of a smile on our faces, it was going to be nothing. The Doctor entered the exam room, talked to us a few minutes and started her exam on Logan. It wasn't long after noticing his body was like (best description I have) a “wet noodle”.
Grammy and Papa. Driving was not an option, that would have taken away from the time we could spend with him. This takes me back to the beginning, it was so hard to see your grandchild go through this with nothing you can do to change it or make it go away. We could have covered him in band-aids, hugs, kisses but we could not make the “owies” go away. The feeling of despair, unable to make Shelle and Chris' hurt go away, knowing what they would inevitably be going through, sending them all the strength and courage I could muster, unable to make their owies go away. Logan passed away on May 11, 2009, 1 hour after Mother’s Day. She soon opened his mouth to see his quivering tongue and then left the room with tears in her eyes. She re-entered the room in what seemed like an eternity and just looked around the room at us. She said "I cannot be sure without testing, but this looks like a Muscular problem, with the quivering tongue the only thing I know of with this symptom is Spinal Muscular Atrophy, it is a genetic disorder".
It was a day of deep sorrow; a day of celebration, a day where we knew Logan had no more pain, a day when we knew that there would be no more poking and prodding in Logan’s little body. It was a day where we knew that we would no longer see our daughter and son-in-law wondering when this day would come.
We all had a little cry, the next thing I heard was my baby girl’s voice, so strong and sure, "okay, what do we do next?" I thought “Okay, be strong, listen to her, we will get through this”. Then the Doctor said “There is nothing we can do but keep him comfortable, he will not survive this. He does not have long.” Shelle and her husband, Chris would not hear of that! They got on to the computer, reading, researching, networking, and all the hard work paid off, we were allowed to be with him for 4 years, certainly that was a gift. In the 4 short years that we had him in our lives he taught so much, brought so much laughter and joy and of course those amazing eyes; as anyone can tell you, he was those eyes. He taught so many people so much, he taught us that terminal illness is not the “end”; it is just a “shortened time”. Since we flew from Washington to Arizona many times a year, Logan even taught me to control my fear of flying! We needed to spend as much time as possible with him; loving him, touching him and letting him know how much he is loved, and to ensure that he knows his
I know that someday the exhaustion on my daughter’s face and the beautiful TRUE smile will return to her lovely face, and it is a day that her father and I look forward to. However, this was a beautiful chapter of life, one that we would have never wanted to miss.
Cheryl and Wayne Fournier, Sr. are Grammy and Papa to Logan “LogiBear” Harman
“My Angel Baby” ~ A Nurses Journey with SMA Milinda Preciado is a nurse, whose first job assignment after receiving her nursing license, was working with Logan Harman, a child diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Type I. Over a period of two years, Milinda went from working a couple of days a week to working with Logan full time, travelling with Logan and his family; not only providing care for Logan, but lending support and friendship to his parents. With no prior experience, or knowledge, of SMA, working with Logan and his family, as well as meeting many children affected by SMA and their families, Milinda not only learned about the disease, but was deeply touched by the
inspirational children and families affected by SMA. Having a firsthand view of the unimaginable challenges that the children of SMA face, Milinda was struck by the amazing determination of survival, and positive attitudes that are prevalent in each of these children and their family members. Becoming a nurse was Milinda’s dream job, she became more than a nurse to Logan and his parents, she became a member of their family. While her time working with Logan was cut short, she remains a member of his family, and continues her amazing relationship with his parents.
This is her story… I call Logan my “angel baby” because in my eyes he will always be such an image of perfection. He is one of the strongest people that I have ever been lucky enough to meet in my life. Until I met the Shelle and Chris Harman, I didn’t know what SMA was or the effects it has on those involved. I learned very quickly the facts about this illness and how lucky Logan was to have been blessed with such a wonderful, loving family that never gave up on this amazing little boy. I was Logan’s nurse for almost 2 ½ years.
On May 11, 2009 when Logan lost his battle with SMA, I lost a piece of my heart. There is nothing I wouldn’t give to be able to go back to the way things were before that day. This is only a small example of how this amazing 4 year old little boy touched my life forever. I didn’t know what to expect when I first got assigned to the Harman’s; I was a brand new nurse, just out of school. When I arrived to my first day of work and met Logan’s Mom, Shelle; and she led me to Logan’s room where he was getting ready for his morning treatments. She warned me that he might close his eyes at me, that’s what he did when he didn’t know you and hadn’t figured out if he liked you. I walked in, and was immediately struck by big, beautiful eyes, and felt so happy that they were open and he was looking right at me. Over time I learned Logan’s routines, his likes and dislikes, and how he communicated in his own special way; for someone who couldn’t talk he could sure get his point across! Shelle had everything down to a science, so Logan was taken care of the best way possible. Through
good times and rough times we learned to trust each other and it became very clear that we felt the most important thing was making sure that Logan had the best care a child could have. Together, we were Logi’s “M&M’s” (Mommy and Minda) and it doesn’t get much better than that. As I look back now, I see how lucky I was, this wasn’t just a job I went to everyday; I was a part of their family. Logi was very good at keeping me on my toes; there were difficult times when he was sick or had surgeries but there are so many more happy times that it would take me too long to list. Through it all I got to share so much of Logan’s life; from events here in the Phoenix area, to Makea-Wish vacations, and just being there every day for simple day-today things. These are memories that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. A big part of my day was going in to Logan’s room every morning, and before starting his treatments, I would lean over so he could see me and give him big kisses on his cheek to say good morning. He would smile at me and my heart would melt. Even when I was having a bad day he would be so silly, I couldn’t help but laugh. As hard as it was, I was privileged enough to be there as we gathered as a family to say goodbye to Logan.
When I walked in, Shelle told me that she thought he had been waiting for me; I felt so honored at that moment, I cannot explain it. Shelle rocked him until he took his last breath and I could feel a piece of my heart slipping away little by little. Finally I was hit by all the things that I would miss, but at the same time I realized how lucky I was to be able to get to do a few of these things for one last, final time. I was there to help give Logan his last bath, he always smelled so wonderful. Shelle let me hold him one last time, kiss him and say goodbye. It is something I cannot put in to words. For Logan’s service I wrote a letter to Chris, Shelle and Logan. All I could do was thank them for sharing their precious baby boy with me. I thanked Logan, because I am a better person for having him in my life. They are my family and I love them with all my heart. “Logan, you are forever in my heart. Your Mina loves you, you will forever be my “angel baby” and I will always be “Logi’s Nurse”.”
SMA, A Mother’s Journey “You have to live everyday to the fullest and cannot live in regret because there may not be a tomorrow” such as talking, and comprehended directions early.
she very
When she went in for her checkups at two and four months everything was fine. Since she was a little over weight that was what the doctors and other family thought was the reason for her not being able to crawl. This reasoning made sense and slowly Destiny started sitting but was very unstable and did not sit for long periods of time.
My name is Terri Nichols and I have two beautiful girls, Destiny who is 6 and Shianne who is 2 years old. Being a mother is something I always knew I wanted to be. So when I first became pregnant with my first daughter needless to say I was ecstatic. I had a very easy pregnancy, no discomfort, no morning sickness just perfect. On April 21,2003 I gave birth to a 8lb 4oz girl, Destiny. She was healthy as could be and we brought her home the next day to start our new family of three. I couldn’t wait to experience motherhood, the crawling, walking, hugs, school, and dance classes. As Destiny got older she really didn’t meet physical milestones but exceeded mental achievements
At her six month check up her pediatrician was very outgoing and played around with her a lot. He felt something was a little off. He held Destiny’s back to his body and just supported her slightly, then he ran up and down the hallway of the doctor’s office with her. When he came back he said he was a little concerned because she didn’t really tense up like she should have. He then referred us to a pediatric neurologist to be on the safe side. By this time Destiny was 7 months still not crawling and sitting up less than she used to. The neurologist th did blood work and on January 16 2004 we had the results. Destiny had SMA, Spinal Muscular Atrophy type I/II. When we went into the room he said “I have terrible news”. This coming from a doctor I broke down into tears immediately. He proceeded to tell us that our 8 month old daughter would slowly loose her ability to sit, hold her
head, eat, drink and eventually lose her ability to breath. He stated all we could do was take her home and love her as 70% of children diagnosed at her age pass nd away before their 2 birthday. Leaving the doctor we were in total shock, we got to the car and just cried, we couldn’t believe what was happening. Destiny was in the back seat of the car just a happy little baby cooing and talking. How is she going to die? It didn’t seem possible. While I was still working full time, I put off going back to school once Destiny was diagnosed. I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible since it was going to be limited. Around a year old Destiny starting seeing a Physical Therapist to try and maintain what gross motor skills she did have and to motivate her to try and push as much as she can to possibly meet new goals.
She also saw an Occupational Therapist to work on her fine motor skills. Next, Destiny started seeing a Neurologist every 8-12 weeks to monitor the progression of her disease. In addition, she started seeing a Pulmonologist every 6-8 weeks. Since respiratory failure is the ultimate cause of death for kids affected with SMA seeing a pulmonary doctor is very important. They prescribe much needed machines and medicines to help keep Destiny’s lungs open and clear. From a young age Destiny was started on a regimen of breathing medications, and machines to help move her secretions around, and she stayed home with a caregiver opposed to daycare to prevent sickness. With this dark cloud of death over our heads, weeks turned into months and months turned into years. Eventually I realized what the doctor had predicted wasn’t going to happen, not now. Destiny is now a relatively speaking, healthy 6 year old girl. She uses a power wheelchair to get around and has been able to experience preschool, st kindergarten and is now in 1 grade. Destiny is a very bright and energetic girl. She plays power soccer and loves to sing, dance and adores being a big sister. While Destiny plays video games, watches TV, and plays board games like typical kids her age she also has another routine that sets her apart but is necessary to keep her healthy. As a six years old girl with SMA, Destiny uses a bi-pap machine which stands for Bi-level Positive Airway Pressure and this is a
breathing machine that helps people get more air into their lungs. A nebulizer which is a device used to administer medication in the form of a mist inhaled into the lungs. A cough assist machine which helps someone cough that doesn't have the ability to cough, and a shacking vest which provides a continuous shacking movement to her chest so secretions are moved around to prevent pneumonia. Also, a suction machine is used when she is sick since she cannot manually clear out secretions from her nose or throat. At night time Destiny is attached to a pulse oximeter machine to monitor her oxygen levels and heart rate. At home Destiny also utilizes a hospital bed, a supportive toilet chair and shower chair.
While Destiny has to experience things a child should not have to go through, she is always in good spirits and has made our family stronger. Even when she has to go to the hospital and she knows they are going to give her an IV and do other things that are not fun, she doesn’t fight it because she knows it is what has to be done. Now that I am more educated about her disease I understand she can do anything she sets her mind to. We cannot live with what we cannot do, or when our time will be over. Having a child with a life limiting condition makes you realize you have to live everyday to the fullest and cannot live in regret because there may not be a tomorrow.
I may not know where our future is going to take us, and I know it could end at anytime but the dark cloud is gone. Life is what we choose to make of it, not her SMA.
Living with SMA Type II –
Madison’s Story back after each test. After 8 weeks, the blood test came back inconclusive. Upon retry, we received the same inconclusive result. Finally, the third test came back positive and we had a name for the disease that was impacting our child and our lives. It was over a year from the time we noticed she was not reaching development milestones until the test came back positive for SMA. We began to research this disease and meet other families in the area who gave us information and support. SMA never seemed to faze Madi. She has always been a fun-loving, smart and social child. Other children flock to her as if she is a rock star. Periodically, Madison wishes she could walk but as a family we focus on the things she can do and not what she cannot do. As parents we are very involved in her daily life to insure she is involved in all the activities that her friends and peers are doing.
Our daughter, Madison Wolff, was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Type II just prior to her 2nd birthday. SMA is a genetic neuromuscular disease contracted when both parents carry the gene, then it becomes a recessive trait. The severity of the disease varies from child to child based on the parent’s copies of the Surviving Motor Neuron (SMN) II protein. The children lack the SMN 1 protein. Madison’s development was on schedule until nine months of age when we noticed she did not bear weight on her legs and her crawl was an arms-only “commando crawl.” She did not pull herself up on furniture like typical development would suggest. After a visit to the neurologist, he ordered an MRI on her brain which came back negative. The doctor then did an MRI on her spinal cord which was also negative. He then told us that they would start testing for “common rare disorders,” with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) being the first blood test that was done. As parents, it was difficult waiting to get the answers
She received her power wheelchair just after her third birthday and after a couple of days she was a “master” taking chances that could only make her parents cringe. The wheelchair gave her a newfound independence. She became mobile, self dependent and mischievous all at once. Finally we were chasing our little girl around! Unfortunately the major side effect of the disease is the possibility of respiratory distress when contracting a virus or bacterial infection. Madison got sick just after her first birthday and was hospitalized with Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), for a week. During her second Christmas, out of state, she was airvac’d and hospitalized a second time for another week with respiratory compromise. The very next Christmas we had a repeat of the previous year. This past spring we spent 37 days in Intensive Care with respiratory failure due to a bacterial infection and she had to be inturbated for 3 1/2 wks. Her lung continued to collapse and the doctors began to doubt a full and normal recovery.
The average physician hasn’t dealt with SMA and so as parents we had to be advocates for Madison. The SMA community rallied to our aide even helping to establish new protocols at the hospital in the way to treat SMA children. After exturbation Madison soared back to normal health and shocked the hospital staff. Due to the respiratory compromise, we always have to be prepared. Madison uses an airway clearance vest twice a day when healthy and more often when not. This vest inflates and compresses the chest to dislodge mucus and loosen secretions to help keep her lungs clear. She has multiple breathing treatments with the vest as well. We always have antibiotics on hand and begin them at the first sight of infection.
with her friends and family, swimming, being outside, and traveling. When she was one she traveled to France for her Uncle’s wedding. She visits her Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, and Cousins in both Northern California and South Dakota frequently. Madi began playing Power Soccer this past year and loves it. It is a blast as a parent to watch her face and see the huge smile as she scores or crashes into other chairs. We also participate in many activities with Families of SMA, Muscular Dystrophy Association, Make-A-Wish, and other organizations that allow us to get together with other families on a regular basis. We just finished remodeling her room as well as building a zero entry pool. In the pool we built graded ramps and benches along both sides that she is able to walk on with the assistance of her flotation vest. In August 2006 we welcomed a second daughter, Ella, into our lives. Ella is not affected but is a carrier of the disease. She has learned her sister’s limitations quickly and has adapted well to them.
Madison uses a Cough Assist to assist her to cough productively and clear the secretions from her lungs. She sleeps at night with a Bipap machine to allow her respiratory muscles to relax and allow more restful sleep with full expansion of her lungs during sleep by creating negative air pressure when she takes a breath. A pulse oximeter is also used to insure proper oxygen levels in her blood. We also try to get her in a stander for an hour a day to prevent contractures and encourage bone density. These treatments take a lot of time out of Madison’s life each day so we try to do entertaining things during these times such as read books, play games or watch TV.
Ella helps Madison by picking things off the floor, opening things that are too difficult and assists Madison in whatever way needed.
Madison began preschool when she was 3. She enjoyed riding the bus everyday and has always loved school.
Ella also enjoys getting rides from Madison on the back of the wheelchair.
We are always apprehensive because the more kids you are around the higher chance of getting sick, but she flourished in school not surprising anyone.
Whether her big sister knows it or not, Ella is her biggest aide and best friend.
The kids at school were curious about why she is in a wheelchair so we have worked to educate staff and students about SMA. Madison just began 1st grade the middle of August and already cannot wait to get to school each day. During her free time, Madison enjoys games, playing
We are a very active family and refuse to live in a bubble. We do everything in our power to treat Madi like an unaffected child and ensure that is the way she is treated by everyone around her. We have the choice everyday of saying “why her”, “why us”, or living life to the fullest and that is what we, and Madi choose to do.
Casey’s Gift of Love
Then I started noticing that Casey seemed lazy. While he was a very happy content baby, he didn't really make any effort to pick up his head. Due to insurance, we changed doctors. I didn't mention this concern to the new doctor because I had new concerns developing. Casey was having a hard time going to the bathroom and it took him forever to get through 3 ounces of baby formula. He didn't do any of the things that I remembered Gavin doing and I knew something wasn't right. At an appointment for my older son, I asked the doctor to take a quick look at Casey and told him my concerns. While he was looking Casey over and checking him out, he got to checking his reflexes and Casey didn't have any! He immediately sent us to a neurologist and they did a DNA test. After a month of waiting, the test confirmed what we had already figured out by now, that Casey had SMA Type 1.
Casey was born on April 16, 2003. About a month before my due date, I noticed that Casey wasn't moving as much as I remembered my 1st son Gavin moving. He moved a little and got the hiccups a lot, but just not “big” movements. I think that God was preparing me for what was to come because I was always slightly concerned that something wasn't quite right from that point on. I had a doctor’s appointment on my due date and mentioned it to the nurse and they sent me right over to the hospital, did an ultrasound (which they said was fine) and then induced labor. When Casey was born the 1st thing I noticed was all his dark hair! He had a head full and Gavin was bald when he was born so it was so funny to me! The second thing that both my husband and I noticed was that he had a very soft cry. We both mentioned it and thought it was just so cute and was also very different from his big brother when he was born. We went home and Casey had a touch of Jaundice so I would lay him in his diaper to sunbathe in front of the window (this is what they told me to do). While doing that, I always noticed that it looked like he was really working to breathe with his belly. At his next doctor’s appointment, I mentioned it and the doctor said that baby's belly breathe a little and it wasn't abnormal. I wasn't comfortable with that and had a feeling it was more than that.
We were devastated. We went through a period that is mostly a blur to me. One day God just snapped me out of it. I realized I had this precious little boy whose life depended on me! Whatever the prognosis the doctor gave us didn't matter at this moment because he was here with us right now. Right now, he needed us to take care of him and love him and give him everything he deserved. God put him here and he was supposed to be here and he needed us! We decided that whatever it took, Casey was going to have a wonderful life for as long as God allowed him to be here. We just took one day at a time. In October of 2003, Casey had a major crash and we almost lost him. Since he had no way to clear secretions from his throat, he stopped breathing and had to be intubated. From something as minor as a small cold, we almost lost our son! After a failed attempt to extubate, the doctors told us we needed to decide if we wanted to trach him or not. I looked at Casey and these big blue eyes, full of love and life looked back at me, and I knew what was right for him! 6 years later, Casey is a smart, loving, funny, sometimes stubborn, and most important happy little boy. He loves
life and enjoys every little thing that he can do. He loves to go out and see everything. He enjoys the trees, the clouds, looking for airplanes in the blue skies. He LOVES to watch his brother do anything at all even if he is just watching TV! He just loves him so much! Only using his eyes, he tells his nurses that he wants to go outside first thing in the morning before his bath, even though he knows he won't be getting his way until after his bath! He loves to be silly with his dad, he loves to be held and snuggled even though he is getting as tall as some of his nurses!
makes OUR life wonderful. He is a gift. He has changed who we are and made us better. He has taught us the true meaning of strength, love and life. I would be lying if I said it has always been easy. We have to fight for things. We have to fight against insurances and such. Casey has to fight germs and infection. He gets really sick and we do not get a lot of sleep sometimes! There are times when I cry, get angry, and ask “why?� Sometimes I see other boys Casey's age running and having fun, and long for him to be able to do those things too. Those days make me more determined to give him the best life ever until he is able to do those things. Maybe it will be with a cure or maybe it will be in heaven, but I know for sure that one day he will run and jump and play soccer with his brother. He will wrap his little arms around our necks and kiss mommy and daddy's cheeks someday. Of that I am sure of. So while I hate what SMA does to our children, I am a better person because of Casey and because of SMA.
He has touched more hearts in his 6 years than I can count. He has made big strong iron workers shed tears because of his amazing strength. Complete strangers come over to him when he is out and about and want to kiss his forehead, which can be a hard thing due to germs. We were in the mall one day and a woman stopped us and insisted we take $100 to put towards his Christmas gifts. I could go on and on with such similar stories. This little boy whose life we wanted to make wonderful,
I have met the most amazing people in the world because of this horrible disease. I love children that I haven't even met, and when one goes on to heaven, I sometimes can't catch my breath because the pain is so unbearable. I truly appreciate things that other people take for granted. I literally know that every single moment with Casey is a gift and I intend to make it count! To learn more about Casey, SMA, and Casey’s Mom, Dawn Daws; visit: www.caringbridge.org/visit/caseydaws
Overcoming Obstacles - Living with SMA
My name is Margaret, and I am known online as “MJ”. I am 21 years old and am a senior in college. While that doesn’t sound too interesting or spectacular, when you look closer, you will see that I am most unlike other seniors. 21 years ago, my parents were told that I would not live to see my second or third birthday. I survived and went on to prove to the doctor’s that they did not know
everything, and that I had a “fighter’s will”. I gave up believing the doctor’s “predictions” of how long I would live. Growing up and hearing every time that you are sick that that would be the end of your life, you tend to ignore the voices and do everything in your power to prove the medical field that they are wrong. Almost two years ago, the doctors informed me that it was the “end of my life” and I could live out the rest of my days in the hospital. But here I am, enjoying my summer break by going camping on the ocean, clearly not living out my days in the dreaded hospital. To go back a little, I was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Type 1, which is the number one genetic killer of children under the age of two.
I am the first born child of my parents, Tim and Beth, who had many dreams planned for me; little did they know that they both carried the gene for Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA).
I, on the other hand, had no interest in fighting everything, I was content to snuggle in with my family, and do whatever was required of me.
It is a recessive gene that both parents must carry and then have a 1 in 4 chance of having a child with SMA.
That all changed the day that Emma passed away.
The first four years of my life, I was the shy and withdrawn child, letting my younger sister do the talking. I could talk and I would, but only in my own time and only with people I knew.
I won the genetic lottery and was “lucky” that I got both genes from my parents. I was diagnosed at 6 months of age and my Mom was 3 months pregnant with my younger sister. My sister, Emma also “won” the genetic lottery and was diagnosed at 3 months of age. Emma and I were as different as night and day. Emma took after my dad while I took after my mom; Emma was outgoing while I was shy; I was mommy’s girl while Emma was daddy’s girl. We were different, each set out on our own paths. Emma followed the traditional path of SMA with a little deviation, only because there was little understanding 20 plus years ago, and treatments that are available today, simply were not around then.
I knew when dad and Brenda, my caregiver, came back from the hospital. Emma had been telling me that she “was going home soon” that she was going to be with God.
Emma lived three years, but was filled with life, school, family trips, and friends.
Growing up, I had the typical issues of a child with SMA, just a little later than normal. I guess I was lucky in that although I have Type 1, I followed my own path. I never followed the typical progression of SMA, but made my own path.
She chose her own time, choosing to leave her earthly body while she was healthy to avoid the fear of the doctor’s wanting to do surgery on her.
I guess I was “slow” like the doctors told my parents, and I progressed slower than normal.
Emma had no time to stop for breathing treatments or hospitalizations; she wanted to live on the go. She lived for going to school and teaching her fellow students how to talk or teaching all those around her what the true meaning of life was.
From that day forward, I became much more outgoing. I somehow inherited my sister’s feisty spirit and went on to live my life, fighting for my sister… or myself, I really am not sure.
I have had many surgeries that are needed for my survival. My first surgery was a spinal fusion and that surgery changed me in more ways than normal. Spinal fusion changed me physically in that I could breathe better but it also changed in who I was: my personality, my wishes and my desires and who I was! I was a typical child of the late 90s at the time of my surgery; I was addicted to beanie babies. I wanted them all and I wanted them NOW. My father told me to figure out how I was going to get them, so I went online
and entered contests and won them by writing stories. When I had spinal fusion, my beanie friends decided to get me most of the beanies I did not have and sent them to me, so I got a package a day to help speed my recovery.
of many ages. I also help Our SMA Angels who design websites for those with SMA by designing and updating websites for families whose children have or had SMA. To learn more about MJ and her organization B4SMA, please visit: http://www.our-sma-angels.com/b4sma/ This is how I met my little buddy Logan.
By simply receiving those beanies, they changed me from an “I want I want” child to an “I have to give” child. I started in the hospital by donating my extra beanie duplicates I had received to other kids in the pediatric intensive care unit who were less fortunate than I was. Since my spinal fusion, I have had many more surgeries, more hospitalizations, gotten weaker over time and needed more supports and assistance, but have grown more as a person. I continue to give of my time and efforts to help others in the SMA Community. About five years ago, I started my own organization, B4SMA or Blankets for SMA Kids.
I had heard of Logan through an SMA Website and responded offering help, suggestions and emotional support. I offered to send a blanket from B4SMA to little Logan, who was in the hospital at the time. After Logan got out of the hospital, his mom, Shelle and I became good friends. I was there for her if she needed to E-talk and she was there for me if I needed anything. I started Logan’s keeping it up to Shelle and Chris, could spend more my little man.
website, date for so they time with
During the ensuing years, Logan and I became “boyfriend and girlfriend” and when I was in the hospital, we grew closer. During my down time of being stuck in the hospital, fighting the doctors on getting what I needed, I received an email from Logan with a picture of him, holding a sign that said, “Will you be my queen? “ It was signed King Logan James the first. “King Logan James I” So, while in the hospital, I became “engaged“to my little Logan on the other side of the country. Even though Logan and I have never met, Logan’s passing away hit me hard and like many others, I cried for his loss.
With the help of my caregiver and her family along with other generous people, I started sending out blankets and beanie babies to kids who have SMA. To date, I have sent out over 715 blankets to kids in many countries
Each child that I have sent a blanket to all hold a special place in my heart, each child that looses their own battle with SMA takes a piece of my heart and make me want to do more. As a college student, I cannot afford to send money, so I send them my time, either in assisting with websites, or making a tribute video as a memorial. It is the only way I know of for me to personally help, to make a memory for others so that they will never be forgotten.
Spiritual Healing - The Invisible Higher Power Spiritual healing may appear a little old fashioned in this advancing world of technology, however many people are seeking peace, balance and healing that traditional medicine doesn't seem to be able to provide or treat. The invisible higher power of God or the higher source, and the connection to the Divine healing process cannot be ignored by many people. An open and honest spiritual person accepts God and accepts the concept that God heals everything in Divine order and in Divine timing. Healing is simply God's healing in a person who request a healing, and has faith, and trust he will heal them. When a person develops symptoms of physical illness it indicates there is a deeper need for healing their soul. To heal an illness or dis-ease with Spiritual healing one must base this healing on metaphysical principals, sometimes known as The Laws of the Universe.' The Laws of the Universe are natural and easy to follow once you learn a few basic principals. Spiritual healing is following the natural laws of the Universe using pure vibrational life force energy otherwise know as enlightenment. Spiritual Healing complements conventional medicine healing the whole body on all levels including mind, body and spirit. Spirituality is not something you do occasionally and then forget about it. It must be practiced regularly on a daily basis to understand and receive the benefits. Many people are very knowledgeable on the Laws of the Universe and spiritual principals, yet fail to practice the principals in their daily lives. It is important to live your life on a daily basis and incorporate spirituality in all you do. Spiritual Healers Healers have the ability to connect with life force energy and act as a conduit for life force healing energy. A spiritual healer works with love and light which relaxes the whole body and heals for the highest good of the person receiving the healing. The effects and benefits of healing can be felt in many areas of your life - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually and can be profound and life changing. Anybody can learn spiritual healing and become a healer to either heal themselves or others. Developing Spirituality Within Everyone can develop an inner connection with God and begin to feel the love and specialness, he gives to the soul. Spirituality teaches us that we are part of a special force much greater than we believe and also teaches us we are not alone in the world we always have access to the invisible help, love and support from the higher source. Spirituality teaches us how to feel totally
loved, secure and above all protected Spirituality and Spiritual healing is open to anyone regardless of religion and race. Everyone has the ability to connect with the Divine and life force energy. Types of Spiritual Healing There are so many ways one can connect with spiritual healing energy. They include Prayer, Visualization, Meditation, Reiki, Spiritual Art, Angel Assisted Healing, Channeling of Spiritual Guides and Angels, Singing, Chanting, Drumming, Yoga, Tai Chi etc the list is endless. Spiritual healing also opens up the connection with the Divine and his helpers (Guardian Angels, Angel and Spirit Guides, Fairies etc) and often enables one to develop and advanced their Psychic Abilities also. True enlightenment is opened up through the wiliness to accept the Laws of the Universe with faith and an inner knowing and acceptance, that you are a part of a loving and advanced spiritual connection. Your soul journey is unique and a very spiritual process which you learn many lessons. For many people this soul journey has been difficult and presented many challenges which they have been able to overcome with the regular practice of Spiritual Healing or visit http://www.Universalhealingcentre. com. Yvonne Handford is an Author, Speaker, Soul Healing Coach, Psychic and Healing Master trained in Usui Reiki and many other healing modalities and alternate therapies. Yvonne is a Healer who specializes in promoting the "Golden Keys" to Healing Within and assisting others to live the life of their dreams. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Yvonne_H andford
The Tantra Tip of the Month
Eye Gazing – A Meditation for Connecting to the Soul
A Timeless Practice The eyes are the “windows to the soul.” When we gaze deeply into the eyes of another person, we can see beyond their physical form and personality into their essence. The practice of eye gazing is an ancient Tantric practice. It is found in the Hindu, Buddhist and Sufi traditions and is considered to be a path to enlightenment. The 13th century Sufi poet, Rumi, became enlightened while gazing into the eyes of his teacher. Many of Rumi’s poems celebrate the power of eye gazing. Here is one: Both our sets of eyes became drunk, Utterly intoxicated by the promise of Union. O my God! What is this union of eye to eye?! Eye gazing is something you have probably done naturally, such as when gazing into the eyes of a newborn baby or when you first fell in love. Even when you are in a conversation and maintain eye contact, you are doing a less focused form of eye gazing. Eye gazing can be done as a one-on-one meditation with a friend or beloved. It can also be done solo, by gazing into a mirror. You can integrate it into daily life by engaging people briefly, in passing, with the intent that when you meet their eyes you will see beyond their form, into their essence. Some of the benefits of this practice include: becoming more present, opening your heart and expanding your awareness of the Divine in all beings. The Heart Salutation You begin this practice by acknowledging the Divine in each other with a Heart Salutation. Sit across from your partner and look into their eyes. Maintaining eye contact throughout the rest of the process, begin by extending
your arms towards the earth, palms together. Then, inhale and keeping your hands in prayer position, bring them to your heart. Exhale, as you bow forward and acknowledge the Divine in each other with the Sanskrit salutation “Namaste.” Namaste means “I honor the Divine in you as a reflection of the Divine in me.” Inhale, as you straighten back up. Finally, exhale as you allow your hands to return to the starting position, pointed towards the earth. The Bubble Now, create a bubble around you and your partner. Do this by waving your arms around you as you both define the shape of the bubble that surrounds you. Then, gesture as if removing an object from your bubble and verbally share what things you are removing from the bubble. These are things that won't serve you in this practice (the past, distractions, anger, worry, etc.) Next, gesture as if bringing things into your bubble. These are things that will enhance your connection (love, willingness, presence, trust etc.) At this point, you may want to offer an appreciation or blessing to the other person (“I honor your heart, which gives so much love to the world.”) Creating the bubble helps to call you into present moment awareness and creates a safe space in which to practice the eye gazing meditation. Share Desires, Fears and Boundaries Once the bubble is created, share your intentions/desires, fears and boundaries related to this practice. First, one person speaks while the other person listens without judgment or commentary. Then you switch roles. Here is an example:
“I desire to stay present, open and connect deeply to your soul.” “My fear is that I will get self-conscious and will start acting silly.” “My boundary is to stay present with myself and you, even if resistance arises.” Why boundaries? When I teach this practice in my classes, people often have resistance to setting boundaries. Boundaries are not walls, they are bridges. Bridges helps to bring people together. Intimacy happens when people have healthy boundaries. Healthy boundaries allow you to feel safe, stay open and be present. Boundaries are dynamic, so it is important to check-in periodically with yourself to see if your boundaries have changed. If they have changed, update your partner so they can honor your new boundaries. Here are a few examples: “I need to end this practice by noon.” “I don’t want to be touched during this meditation.” “I will stay present. If I go into thinking, I will close my eyes for a moment to bring myself back into the practice.” Eye Gazing Practice Once you have created the bubble and shared your desires, fears and boundaries, begin the eye gazing practice. Traditionally, it is recommended that you begin by gazing into left eye. This is because the left side of the body is considered to be the receptive side. Use a soft gaze. This is not a staring contest. It is ok to change eyes if and when you feel called too. Just relax, breathe and allow the experience to unfold. Notice what arises without judging it. Be open and curious, like a child. You can do this practice for as long as you want. I suggest the first time you begin with 2 to 5 minutes of eye gazing. Then, close your eyes, go inside and connect internally for 1-2 minutes. When you are ready, open your eyes and begin again. Extend the time as you get more comfortable with the process. Doing this practice for an extended period of time can take you to new levels of connection. Set aside a time when you can practice for 45 to 60 minutes. Afterwards, discuss your experience with your partner. Eye gazing is a great way to discover how open you are and to see if any resistance arises. If you feel resistance, see if you can allow it to melt.
How does it feel to be seen? How does it feel to look deeply into another person? This is a great practice for developing a deeper heart connection. It can be helpful to keep a journal of your experiences. Eye gazing is a simple and powerful practice. It can cut though illusion and open the door to Truth. When done regularly, it can transform your understanding of who you are. Even if this is the only Tantric meditation you ever do, you could awaken through this practice. I invite you to practice eye gazing with your friends and I look forward to hearing what you discover. You can write to me at crystalm@magnifyyou.com Crystal Dawn Morris, is a Certified SkyDancing Tantra Teacher and the founder of Tantra for Awakening. Her classes, workshops and coaching sessions give people practical tools for creating an ecstatic life. She offers workshops and coaching sessions to individuals and couples in the USA and Canada. Her next series of courses in Phoenix, AZ run from August through November 2009. She also teaches a year-long course for those who want to teach Tantra to others. You can read her blog at www.TantraGal.Blogspot.com . To learn more go to, www.TantraForAwakening.com. Crystal Dawn is currently creating a new website and teleseminar about eye gazing as a spiritual path.
The Raw Ingredients of Spirituality could perform their function. I wouldn’t be seeing, feeling, touching, tasting, thinking, etc. And what all that means is this: the spiritual part is the real part. The spiritual part of each one of us is our spirituality. I’d like to take this one step further. If I am a spiritual self with a body, is this earth experience spiritual or physical? Well, it seems to me that if my spiritual self, and your spiritual self is the real part of self, then this world would have to be spiritual also so that the real self could function, could ambulate, could unfold.
Some folks think that spirituality has to happen only on solemn occasions or only in a location that has been set aside for “things spiritual.” I don’t happen to agree with that concept. I think that every time and every place is spiritual. We first have to define spirituality. In Webster’s 1828 edition of his dictionary (the edition that is the most spiritual for my money,) he defines spirituality as the essence distinct from matter; immateriality. That seems fairly simple to me. Do you see life as a spiritual experience, distinct from matter, immaterial? I’ll just bet a dollar to a donut that some of you do not. Huzzah for those of you who do. I think that the “I” of you is the spiritual part – the soul part – the mental part. I know that if I died and you saw me laid out on a slab, all my physical parts would be there, but the part that animates me, would be missing. That would mean that without my spirit self and with two ears, I would not be able to hear. The same would be true of all the other parts. Without my spiritual self present, none of the other parts
In order to gain enlightenment, I believe you have to reason your way to the position that Life is Mental. I could also say Life is Spiritual. I view Mental and Spiritual as the same. I believe spirituality is our very nature. Our world today is so much about gratification. We go about satisfying our needs and wants in an almost ravenous fashion. I know, I know, I’m an oldster and you may think my ideas are archaic. I’d like to offer the slant that perhaps after dozens of years of experience, I might just have unfolded a truth or two and am now sharing those truths with you. I think that in working to gratify ourselves with the next good job, the bigger car, the more expensive wardrobe, and so on, we miss out on what is truly happening silently behind the scenes. In a spiritual experience, the unfolding that goes on is silent and invisible. Only the good can see its reality. I hope you are good enough to see it. When you elevate yourself to a purely mental plane, you can see that the unfoldment of your faculties and your virtues is what has been happening silently and invisibly behind the scenes of your going to school, or dating, or functioning inside a family, or purchasing that car, or anything you could name.
I think I’ve set the stage substantially enough to get back to my first idea, which was the raw ingredients of spirituality. As a spiritual individual in a spiritual universe, everything is the raw ingredients. And to live consciously in this environment, you simply need to ask yourself some key questions: • •
•
What can I learn from this experience that will augment my spirituality? What have I been thinking (a most spiritual action) that has caused this to happen in my experience? How can I use this experience as a stepping stone to bring myself up higher in the realm of spirituality?
At some point, if you continue to work consciously to gain all the good you can from each of your experiences, you will be propelled into a functioning spirituality that is rich, rare, easy, convenient, normal and natural. You will exude the aroma of goodness. You will manifest all the money you want and need. You will experience perfect health. You will be one of the happy people. Many of you know that I am an advocate for self-acceptance for folks who struggle with their bodily image. My wish for you is that you discover sooner than later that your nature is spiritual. I hope you will learn how it functions so that you can enjoy its fruits as quickly as possible. Pat Matson uses the education she’s received, the experiences she’s enjoyed, the lessons Life has taught her along with a deep-seated sense of spirituality, and a passion to share her understanding to help women who struggle with bodily issues. To contact Pat and find out more about your own World of Within and to achieve self-love and self-acceptance through Pat’s tips and resources, email patm@magnifyyou.com
Death
What about when? If you knew the day and time of your own demise, would you surrender every day to your joy? Would you waste it watching another episode of LOST...I love that damn show...or would you climb mountains, build ice sculptures, hug your kids...and then retire with a glass of wine to the newest episode of LOST (that airs in 175 days and 7 hours). What if you could decide what it was? Would you choose to go surrounded by loved ones peacefully, your friends and family singing your name like a soul song, opening the gateway to the next world? Would a mountain lion tear out your throat and consume your body returning you to the cycle of nature? Would you practice singing the eternal OM for the performance of a lifetime...or a death-time? Does this conversation make you uncomfortable?
There is only one thing in this world that will actually kill you. Oh sure, many things can...but only one thing actually will. And that’s the thing isn’t it? We don’t know what that thing is so our brain, out of fear of the unknown, creates stories about an uncertain future that could threaten our bodies. The neuro-pathways that were put in place by dramatic and traumatic moments where we experienced pain fire like cannons when we encroach on their fences. When we trespass upon the unknown or the familiar, our conditioning kicks in and the big scary dragon says, “WAIT!” If the fact that your habits (smoking, junk food, drugs, drinking) are the one thing that will kill you, and you have power, or support to compensate for lack of power, then, it’s time to examine your daily motives...but this brings up an interesting point: ) What if you could look at the big book of life and death? What if you saw within the crystal ball and witnessed your end? If you knew what this thing was, how would your life be different? Really, what if you knew the one thing that was going to end this life of yours? Would you avoid it for the rest of your life? Would you tempt fate again and again by doing that "thing" until you were comfortable with the feeling that this time might be the last?
As an exercise this week, meditate on your death. Write your obituary. Collect pictures of yourself and put them in a slide show presentation to be shown at your wake. Decide who would be at your funeral, write out a guest list. How will your service be different than others? Write this out. Do a will. You may not be able to control when and how, but you do have some say as to what happens next. Not just here and now, but after as well. It is the way of the warrior to look at death and find peace & freedom there too. It is the way of the wizard to know that it is inevitable but just for today, you will create a legacy of magick. It is the way of the Jester to live, love and laugh here and now and to forsake every next moment or past memory for the present and the constant searching of the light hearted shift, and the way of the Bard to sing, dance, perform and paint the beauty of life and death for those who would listen and see art. Death comes to the king and child, and mother and pauper
alike. No amount of love or story or supplements will stop it. Maybe stave it for awhile. I doubt the angel of death is interested in your life story.
From Fat to Enlightenment: Using Obesity as a Catalyst for Unfoldment
Let yourself resolve to know that this moment may be the last moment. What else could it be as far as you know? Are your plans really so important that the grim reaper would say, “Oh, sorry. I’ll come back later. When’s good for you?” Were you to practice the meditation above, you could then know that you have made your last wishes available and perhaps leave this world knowing that you have closed off any gaps in your relationships. You have haven’t you? If you are reading this magazine, than the illusion is that you are a practitioner of personal growth. Could it be that there are still some unfinished relationships in the wings, sitting out their causing stress? Fix them. Quit making excuses, quit expecting any gratitude or apologies to be reciprocated and do what you need to do now. To die as you lived would be the key. Are you satisfied with your death?
We have all heard the old saw “Bloom where you are planted,” and yet each of us has something about ourselves that we don’t like, don’t want, won’t tolerate, and want gone. Mine was being fat.
Because there is only one thing in this world that will kill you.
I was told as an infant that I was fat. “Patty Fatty” was my nickname. Sweet thing to do to a small girl, eh? I also heard “You look like Aunt Ida.” They meant my face looked like Aunt Ida’s face, but because I already thought that I was fat, I could see that Aunt Ida was fat, so I thought they meant I looked fat like Aunt Ida. It was just more fuel for the fire.
Oh, many things can. But only one thing WILL. Don’t you wonder what it will be? And when? Aaron Huey is an internationally known speaker, one of 5 facilitators of the world famous “Predicament”, owner of Fire Mountain Programs, and one of the creators of the rapidly growing coaching system “Experience the Leap”. An educator for 17 years he is nationally known as a leading empowerment coach for children, teens and families. Contact Aaron at aaronh@magnifyyou.com
I self-fulfilled the Patty Fatty prophecy as I entered into puberty, then high school, and then adulthood. I carried those thoughts of fat all my life. Eventually, I was completely successful at manifesting a large body. Well, once you’ve done that, there is a substantial habit in place. I was also a seeker after Truth. I knew that spirituality was a grand goal for my life and I set out to accomplish that. It was a bit like “Hit the ball and drag Charley” if you know that old golfing joke. The sense of being fat went along with me in my search for enlightenment and unfoldment. It was my Linus blanket. There was one very warm summer day when I decided to take a shower and lay on my bed under a fan to cool off. I completely relaxed into the moment and felt comfortable. My constant companion, thinking I was fat, popped up and asked me “Could you be any more comfortable if you weighed 100 pounds less?” I could not for the life of me imagine feeling more relaxed and comfortable than I was. It was then I decided that the size of my body had zip to do with anything else, and
that my thoughts of being fat were, in fact, the very catalyst that had led me to this decision which I totally cherished.
How to Find N, S, E and W the Easy Way
My life changed from that point forward. I did an inventory of all the good I had unfolded because I was fat and that is when I discovered that searching for a resolution for my fat dilemma was the very thing that had pushed me into action, sent me off searching, took me to classes, led me to books, found me the right therapists and teachers. And folks, I began to cherish being fat. I’ll bet that is repulsive to some of you, but trust me, I was so happy for the unfoldment it had pushed me into. When Leyla told me that this month’s theme was spirituality and enlightenment, I just had to tell you my story. I remember that when I was in therapy, one of our sessions was about how each of us felt we had one thing wrong with us. My therapist was insecure because he thought his eyes were too close together. One of the other members in the group felt that the skin on the back of her hands was wrinkled and ugly. I, of course, kvetched about being fat. I could see that their “one thing wrong” was a small nothing, but had become inflated by the sense of the individual worrying about it. Of course, I also had inflated my “one thing wrong.” What was behind the worry about our “one thing wrong” in each one of us? I think it is something everyone has to resolve at some point and this puppy goes deep.
In Classical Feng Shui directions are key to setting up your feng shui correctly because unlike Black Hat/BTB/Western/New Age feng shui Classical Feng Shui is not based upon your front door. You will need to know where North, South, East, West, NE, etc. are for Classical Feng Shui. Now when I say Classical Feng Shui I mean these types of feng shui (did you even know there’s more than one kind of feng shui? Most people don’t.): 1.
Take a moment and look inside of you. Here is what I think is behind our “one thing wrong”: each of us thinks we are not good enough. 2.
Ah, but we are good enough. In fact, we are goodness itself. When I did some reasoning and journaling about that, it only made me love being fat even more. I owed this fat chick one heck of a payback for all she did for me. I have learned who I am in the big scheme. I have learned to love and accept myself in the fullness of acceptance. All because I was fat. What’s your “one thing wrong?” Can you learn to cherish it and see what has done for you? You could turn this summer into the summer of your contentment. Pat Matson uses the education she’s received, the experiences she’s enjoyed, the lessons Life has taught her along with a deep-seated sense of spirituality, and a passion to share her understanding to help women who struggle with bodily issues. To contact Pat and find out more about your own World of Within and to achieve self-love and selfacceptance through Pat’s tips and resources, email patm@magnifyyou.com
3.
Compass feng shui – This type of feng shui is great for creating overall balance and harmony in both your home and office. Black Hat/BTB/Western/New Age feng shui is loosely based upon this type of Classical Feng Shui. Men Gua feng shui – This is feng shui that is personal to you and is based upon your birthday. Once you have your birthday you can determine what your 4 personal best directions are for Success (think career/money), Health, Relationships (personal and at work) and Wisdom (making good decisions for yourself). This type of feng shui is very simple to do and because it’s specific to you it’s a great way to dip your toe into the feng shui waters. I tell you everything you need to know to set up your Men Gua (or what I call Personal feng shui) in my book ‘4 Easy Ways to Ignite Your Love Life & Fatten Your Wallet’ which you can get here: http://www.MoreLoveAndMoney.com Flying Star feng shui – This type of feng shui moves around and is based upon the stars around the Big Dipper. Flying Star feng shui is a great way to determine where the best areas of your home and office are for the year, which months are good for launching a promotion, getting married, asking for a raise, starting a new exercise program, etc. When you use this kind of feng shui it’s like having the answers to a big test ahead of time. You can find out more about Flying Star feng shui here: http://www.palmbeachfengshui.com/articles/article/56 99128/129067.htm
4.
Xaun Kong Da Gua – This type of feng shui is used to determine where and when to put water features on your property to attract weath. I don’t recommend you do this yourself because putting fountains, ponds and pools in the wrong place can create money and other problems for you (infinity pools are a major wealth drainer no matter where they’re located). You really need to hire a consultant who knows all about Xuan Kong Da Gua to do this kind of feng shui properly.
There are a number of other types of feng shui but these are the ones I use the most. So back to the compass. I often get questions from people like: “Is the front of my house North?” or “Do I put the Career area of the ba gua on my front door?” or “How do I use my compass?” The easiest way to determine N, S, E, W, NE, etc. in your home and office is to figure out which direction the sun rises. The sun comes up in the East every day so an easy way to figure out where the directions are is to stand in your home or office and face the direction the sun comes up each day. From this you know that: • • • •
The east area of your home/office is in front of you The south area of your home/office is on your right The north area of your home/office is on your left The west area of your home/office is behind you
An even better way to determine directions is to draw a floor plan of you home, figure out where the center is, stand in the center of your house with a compass and stand facing the direction that the arrow is pointing. The arrow (usually red or black) on a compass always points north. So when you stand facing the direction the arrow is pointing you know that: • • • •
The area of your home/office that’s in front of you is north The area to your right is east The area to your left is west The area behind you is south
It’s really that easy. Plus if you ever get lost in the woods you’ll now know which direction to go to get back to your car. Chriss Barr is a Feng Shui and Dowsing Expert as well as the author of 4 Easy Ways to Ignite Your Love Life & Fatten Your Wallet available at Amazon.com. You can find out more about feng shui and dowsing at chrissb@magnifyyou.com.
Mother Nature Bestows Bounties of the Season As another season passes through, we savor the remaining days of summer. A yearly time of preparation, as students gear up for another school year and anticipate the slowly changing seasons. In the world of wine, the last days of summer signal the beginning of our most exciting time of year. Vineyards throughout the Western Hemisphere are preparing for another wonderful grape harvest. Vines are rich with foliage as grape berries begin to change color with the leaves, absorbing the sun units necessary to sweeten the fruit, bestowed by Mother Nature. Summer brings many magnificent enjoyments, such as gathering with friends and family; enjoying the lush green surroundings and taking the time to appreciate the season. While many are forlorn to see the summer end, a changing season can be the perfect catalyst for change, from small, daily habits, to major lifestyle choices. Highlighting healthy lifestyles along with our green luscious surroundings, our featured wine of the month focuses on the benefits or organic production. Organic has become more prevalent globally, and can be applied to the foods items we are all used to eating. Organic foods are made or grown according to certain production standards. The use of conventional nonorganic pesticides, insecticides and herbicides is greatly restricted and avoided as a last resort. Most certifications allow some chemicals and pesticides to be used, so consumers should be aware of the standards for qualifying as "organic" in their respective locales. Historically, organic farms have been relatively small family-run farms, which are why organic food was once only available in small stores, or select farmers' markets. My wine pick for August hails from a family-run winery in Niagara on the Lake, Ontario called Frogpond Farm Winery, the only certified organic winery in the province. In Ontario, 2007 was one of the best vintages to date, providing wonderful fruit richness and flavorful wines across the board in all styles. Frogpond’s 2007 Cabernet Merlot offers the velvety softness and spicy of Merlot, combined with robust Cabernet Franc.
The fruit used in this blend lend this organic version of Cabernet Merlot a great deal of depth and complexity. The Cabernet Franc varietal is now the most planted red grape in Ontario, where it is often used to create wonderful 100% straight varietal wines. Throughout various growing regions across the world it is often used as a blending grape, which provides ripeness in fruit and good complexity. A full-bodied red, round and well balanced, with earthy blackberry, ripe plum, and lively cassis flavors, a hint of peppery spice, and well integrated tannins. Enjoy this full and aromatic wine with roasted meats or vegetables, lamb and steak during your last BBQ of the summer! What is summer without Rose? Another wine suggestion close to my heart is Legends Estates Winery 2008 Malbec Rose. A new 100% varietal to the Ontario wine scene showing fabulous potential by already winning Gold medals nationally. Rose wine has been around for years but to find a good one always seems to be difficult. Rose wines are originally made from bleeding the free run juice of red grapes, then fermenting in more of a white wine style. This ‘Old World’, traditional style of Rose wine tends to be the best as they carry unique balance of sweetness and acidity offering senses of flavor complexity in the mouth. An increasingly common style of Rose wine, often referred to as a ‘New World’ style are made by blending white and red wine until the desirable pink hue of a Rose is achieved. This Rose style provides color, and generally added sweetness, but tend to lack complexity and freshness in the mouth. Canadian wine writer and critic Michael Pinkus offers his take on our newest Rose, to reinforce my obvious bias towards my new favorite summer wine. "A unique rosé to give taste buds something to talk about!" Look no further than Legends Estates 2008 Malbec Rosé Michael Pinkus, Ontario Wine Review“Looking for a unique rosé that’s not only going to get lips a flapping and tongues a wagging over its uniqueness, but also is going to give taste buds something to talk about too. Then look no further than this unique and inspired rosé from Legends. There’s no misprint here, it really says Malbec, and in 2008 Legends winemaker Serge Papineau has cobbled together a delicious and delightful pink that will have you sipping well into the fall. The smells have a lot to keep
the nose busy, pink grapefruit, raspberry and red berries to spare. The palate follows the nose with a sugar code that hovers at about a one, but what really comes out is the fruitiness, great acidity, fresh clean mouth feel and incredible long finish. This wine seems to change for the better with each sip. Delightful!” Rating: ****½ out of 5 While summer still lingers it is always wonderful to get outside and enjoy the chance to cook your food on a barbeque. With no recipe needed enjoy your favorite piece of protein from beef to pork, chicken or some interesting game meats lightly seasoned and grilled to perfection. Preferably, not too well, so the juices in the meat still flow and provide flavors to enjoy with your wine. For an easy side dish, walk into your fabulous garden and grab some zucchini, peppers, and onions, mushrooms planted by you! Lightly seasoned with garlic, salt, pepper and drizzled with olive oil, grill these veggies on the barbeque about half way through to still maintain a bit of crunch and sweetness. Mmm! Summer is a season that allows us to get in touch with our surroundings and ourselves. If you are not “Living the Life” then you cannot achieve it. You have to live it out daily, and you will see change, improvements and success. It has to become your norm, a way of life, second nature and permanent. You must learn to demand the best for your body, mind and spirit. Work hard to only allow the best things in this world to ultimately effect, transcend, and impact your being. Use your body, mind and spiritual being to keep negativity under your thumb and remain with an upper hand over any damaging influences of this world. So again, enjoy sipping and don’t let summer pass you by! Use this time to get out and have some fun with suggestions of Canadian wine paired your local foods and favorite company. Suggestions for wine and food pairings are a great place to start, but always try to have fun and experiment on your own as well. For the wines suggested in this section please visit Canadianwineshop.com for purchases delivered right to your doorstep. Enjoy your summer sipping and savor every moment!! Cheers and happy sipping!
Paul Lizak is the President of award-winning, third generation Legends Estates Winery. His passions include wine, world travel, great food, and more wine! His experience as a professional speaker, columnist and brand director for Red Diamond Wave and other global companies allow Paul to bring new insights and unique qualities to the many facets of business. Contact Paul at paull@magnifyyou.com
Hydrosols – Liquid Assets Aroma-therapeutic uses Hydrosols are highly versatile and can be used for personal care and around the house. In skincare, Rose, Orange Blossom (Neroli) and Lavender hydrosols are great for hydrating dry skin and cooling hot and sensitised skin. If you have been out in the sun too long and got burned, Lavender hydrosol is soothing and comforting as well as healing. Used in the final rinse after shampooing hydrosols help to condition hair and add a shine.
A hydrosol is the condensate water that is left over after the process of extracting an essential oil by water or steam distillation. This aromatic water contains the very essence of everything that was contained within the plant when it was still alive and growing. When essential oils are extracted by steam distillation, some of the aromatic and healing principles held within the plant are not captured during the process. These important components do not escape into another dimension or disappear into a black hole, for they are absorbed by the steam or water that is used to extract the oil. This steam eventually condenses back into water, and now contains small quantities of essential oil plus many of the water-soluble (hydrophilic) parts of the plant. Now supercharged with more active principles than the essential oil from the plant, this ready to use product offers a safe and convenient way to deliver a wide
range of therapeutic and cosmetic benefits. Technically described as a distillate water, this type of fragrant co-product has been more recently referred to in aromatherapy as a hydrosol, hydrolate or hydrolat. Prior to this all distillate waters were collectively known as 'flower waters' or 'floral waters', and the availability was usually restricted to just a popular few such as lavender, rose and orange flower. The historic term of floral water is now outdated though, since every essential oil extracted by a process of water or steam distillation produces a distillate water as a coproduct. There are now a much larger selection of distillate waters produced from herbs, needles, leaves, woods, roots, barks and seeds widely available. So the term floral water is not consistent with these products and the name of hydrosol is being adopted.
There is no better remedy for puffy, dark circles under the eyes than Chamomile hydrosol. Just soak two cotton wool pads with the hydrosol and cover each eye for around 10 minutes for an immediate and dramatic reduction in puffiness. Regular use can help diminish those dreaded dark circles too.
Some uses for Hydrosols During the summer, hydrosols are perfect to use as a cooling body mist, and the most cooling of all is Peppermint. Make sure you take some with you to use on holidays, on the beach and even to cool those aching tootsies when you are out shopping! Hydrosols help to revitalise you when your energies are beginning to flag, and a few sprays onto a tissue makes a handy wet-wipe for all sorts of applications including babies and grubby children. Hydrosols such as Rose or Neroli and Lavender can be added to the final rinse water in your washing cycle as well as used as a fragrant linen spray whilst ironing since they smell much nicer than their synthetic counterparts.
this Hydrosol captures the full range of therapeutic properties found in Lavender oil. Particularly effective when used after overexposure to the sun. Melissa Hydrosol Fortifying, strengthening, refreshing. An ideal travelling companion that helps to refresh and revive you on long, uncomfortable journeys, this lemon-scented Hydrosol can be used as a rejuvenating spritzer at anytime, anywhere, when you are in need of an instant pick-me-up.
Around the house, hydrosols are great to freshen the air instead of using aerosols which of course are harmful to the environment. The Therapeutic Properties & Beauty Benefits of Organic Hydrosols Hydrolats or Floral Waters contain the therapeutic properties of the plants from which they were made making them ideal for general skincare. Hydrosols are available from reputable aromatherapy retail outlets. Roman Chamomile Hydrosol Relaxing, reducing and soothing. Roman Chamomile Hydrosol soothes red and irritated skin and is excellent at reducing puffiness and dark circles around the eyes. German Chamomile Relaxing, reducing and soothing. In common with the essential oil from which it comes, German Chamomile Hydrosol is exceptionally soothing to irritated and problem skin. This hydrosol you would use for its benefits rather than its fragrance. Lavender Hydrosol Soothing, toning and antiseptic Produced from organic Lavender,
Peppermint Hydrosol Cooling, astringent and refreshing - The cooling effect of Peppermint Hydrosol will refresh and invigorate at any time. Especially good when used on hot, tired and aching feet at the end of a busy day. Orange Blossom Hydrosol Uplifting, refreshing and restoring Use as a facial spritzer to refresh and revive. Orange Flower Hydrosol has a natural hydrating and balancing effect on the skin. Orange Blossom Hydrosol Uplifting, refreshing and restoring Use as a facial spritzer to refresh and revive. Orange Flower Hydrosol has a natural hydrating and balancing effect on the skin. Rose Otto Hydrosol Toning, hydrating and balancing The divine fragrance of Rose Otto Hydrosol makes it the perfect facial spritzer, any time of day. Used regularly, it helps to keep your complexion clear and fresh looking. Frankincense Hydrosol Comforting, Uplifting and Soothing - An earthy, resinous fragrance slightly reminiscent of frankincense oil. This is a very useful hydrosol for all skin types since it has the ability to improve the texture and clarify skin. Geranium Hydrosol Balancing, Soothing,
and
Refreshing - With a lovely feminine fragrance, Geranium hydrosol is great as a facial spray to refresh both the skin and the tired mind. Rosemary Hydrosol Invigorating, Uplifting and Fortifying - With a fortifying and invigorating action this is a hydrosol with a pick me up experience. On days when you need mental clarity and energy, Rosemary hydrosol is just what you need. It is a useful toner for oily skin types and excellent to use in hair care as a final rinse to promote healthy shiny hair. *None of the above recipes are a substitute for medical treatment. You should always have a full discussion with your medical practitioner.
Primrose Williams has studied Aromatherapy and Reflexology in Hong Kong since 1993 and holds a number of certifications. She has a deep interest in both subjects and has given personal consultations by way of holistic advice and customized aromatic blends. To learn more about Aromatherapy, Reflexology, and Reiki, contact Primrose at primrose@magnifyyou.com
Hemorrhoid Home Treatment - Five Tips of Relief That Really Works! By Steve L Hughes
Anyone who has hemorrhoids can tell you that they spend a ton of money and countless amounts of time seeking a treatment that really works. The pain and the itching will positively drive you up the wall! So, it's no wonder someone will search high and low for a hemorrhoid home treatment that works! Unfortunately, it is not always that easy to find. Many treatments involve weird rituals, so I have tossed those out the window after just reading about them. Other treatments cost too much money to have the correct formula, thus these got tossed out due to the expense involved. Though not exactly considered a treatment, the hint most frequently given because it works, is to augment the amount of fruit and vegetables you eat in an effort to gain bulk. Secondly, and possibly more important is to drink a lot of liquids, especially water, which not only helps digestion but will also help in development of bulkier stools. Go to the bathroom as soon as you feel the urge is a
great hemorrhoid home treatment. Holding in your feces will do nothing but make them harder to evacuate later. Use witch hazel often. By putting witch hazel on your hemorrhoids you accomplish two things-you stop the itching-and you reduce inflammation. Use a sitz bath. The warm water will help reduce itching as well as reduce the pain. Pat the anus dry after a shower or sitz bath. Rubbing hard will increase the pain. Making every effort to rid yourself of those pesky hemorrhoids will help you to get rid of them. Hemorrhoid home treatment works if you are diligently applying them. Surgery is not necessary if you adhere to a simple hemorrhoid home treatment. Looking for a 100% natural hemorrhoid home treatment remedy that works in 48 hours? Discover the secrets by heading over to http://www.HemorrhoidTreatmentSecrets.com for a limited time offer. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steve_L_Hughes
Osteoporosis and Exercise
Take Charge of Your Health - Preventing Diabetes By Carlotta Jones
Many studies have conclusively demonstrated the benefits of exercise in dealing with a wide range of health issues from heart disease to fatigue. The benefits of exercise are even useful in combating osteoporosis. Just as muscles get stronger from exercising, so do bones. Weight-bearing, high impact exercise and weightbearing, low impact exercise are the two types that have been shown to help build bone strength and bone density.
Diabetes has become a prevalent health concern in our society today. Unfortunately the daily choices made by most Americans are more sedentary lifestyles fueled by not so healthy convenience foods. Being pre-diabetic is a serious condition that needs to be addressed early on. The good news is that diabetes can be prevented or delayed.
People who do not already have osteoporosis or low bone density can benefit from high impact exercise such as jogging, running, dancing, hiking, jumping rope, stair climbing or high density aerobics. Low impact is safer for people who cannot do high impact exercises and carry the same benefits. Lower impact types of exercises include walking, either on a treadmill or outside, using an elliptical machine, low impact aerobics and using a stair climbing machine.
More than likely you already have a good sense that you may be overweight as most Americans are. You may already be aware of the connection that excess weight and body fat might create health issues down the road. A very strong indicator of potential future heath conditions is excess belly fat. Belly fat is associated with significantly increasing the risk for heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes. Whether or not you have excessive belly fat, everyone benefits from taking charge with their physical condition and health in the prevention of disease and especially diabetes.
There are also non-impact, non-weight bearing exercises that are good for your overall health, but that do not help build bones. They can be part of a well rounded overall program, but you should limit them and be sure to do plenty of impact exercises. Non-impact exercises include swimming, biking, stretching and flexibility exercises and water aerobics. In order to get the most from your fitness program you should aim for 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week. You can break the 30 minutes into several sessions if that fits into your schedule better; three 10 minute workouts give you as many benefits as one 30 minute session. Sammie Clemmons is a Fitness Coach. To learn more, visit http://www.theworkoutadvisor.com/. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sammie_Clemmons
Common sense tells us that in general watching one's diet and incorporating exercise into a regular routine is important to achieving and maintaining good health. It is also necessary in diabetes prevention. There are medications or diabetic supplies that can be utilized in the prevention and delay of diabetes; however diet and exercise have proven to be more effective. First let's consider nutrition and making healthy food choices. It's important to eat lots of vegetable and fruits and of all different colors which aids in building your immune system. In many cases, eating out can make up over 60% of the typical diet. Eating out and fast foods, no matter how healthy you think it might be probably isn't as healthy as you would like.
NATURAL SUNBURN RELIEF
Other important foods to add to your diet are whole grains, dried beans, fish, lean meats, and plenty of nonfat dairy items. These foods allow you to get the best nutrition value for your calorie intake. One of the easiest and best things to incorporate into your daily routine is drinking plenty of water. Water consumption not only helps to dilute the concentration of blood sugar but also helps to remove toxins and boost fat metabolism. Exercise is basically anything to get you moving around the house or in the yard, as well as activities like vigorous walking or going to the gym to work out. The immediate physical benefit of exercise is that it lowers blood pressure, clears your head, reduces stress, while burning calories beyond typical daily activities. In addition, physical activity can lower your blood sugar and reduce cholesterol. One way that exercise reduces blood sugar in diabetes prevention is that as muscles increase and become stronger, they also require more blood sugar or glucose for energy. Increased use of glucose for fuel then decreases blood sugar in the blood stream. It's amazing how we really do have the ability to take charge of our own destiny and create a better life and health to enjoy. Diabetes prevention is something everyone can do by improving your diet and making exercise a part of your daily life. Not only are you improving your life, but quite possibly saving your life. Take charge of your health by improving your diet and increasing your exercise. The benefits are numerous including diabetes prevention as well as improving your general quality of life. For all your diabetic testing supplies and your diabetic prescription medication needs, visit ValueMedical.com. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carlotta_Jones
Sunburn is the inflammation and blistering of the skin caused by the overexposure of the skin to the sunlight. Ultraviolet rays reaching the earth are hazardous for the skin. UVA rays are low energy rays that penetrate deep into the skin; disturbing its structure – the collagen and elastin –causing premature wrinkling and sagging. UVB rays have higher energy and can cause sunburn to the top layer of the skin. These rays are also responsible for the development of malignant melanoma (skin cancer). In order to protect the skin, you need to use a commercially produced sun-block or barrier sun screen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15. Never stay in the sun longer than recommended by the manufacturer. Spending an hour in the early morning or late afternoon sun is healthy for the body and spirit. Wear sunscreen and protective clothing between 10am and 4pm when the sun’s rays are strongest It is easy to underestimate the power of the sun, and sometimes we end up with a sunburn when least expecting it. Below are some suggestions to assist, bring relief and speed up the healing process.
Before using any of the suggestions, make sure to examine your skin to check for blisters that may be forming, or may have already formed. If there are blisters, then see your doctor immediately and do NOT use the suggestions below. If there are no blisters, have a gentle cool shower and make sure to drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration. Aloe Vera Gel
Baking Soda Baking Soda is extremely beneficial for treating sunburned and itchy skin. It may be placed directly into a tepid lukewarm bath water or incorporated into a paste that can be applied to the skin. Baking Soda Paste (makes 1/4 cup) ¼ cup Soda Bicarbonate (Baking Soda) 1 ½ - 2 tbsp Lavender or Chamomile hydrosol 5 drops Lavender EO
Aloe Vera is well known for its ability to assist with sunburn relief. For immediate relief it can be used directly on sunburned skin to quicken the healing time. It is especially soothing to the skin because of its high water content (99.5%).
Mix all ingredients until a medium thick paste forms, apply gently to the skin and allow to dry. Rinse off carefully without irritating the sunburned skin
For best results keep Aloe Vera gel in the refrigerator, this will increase its cooling effect. Adding 1-2 drops of either Lavender, Calendula, or Chamomile essential oils will assist with the healing process.
Green tea is a powerful anti-oxidant, and may be used topically or internally as a tea before or after sun exposure. Green tea helps to reduce skin inflammation and redness, protect skin cells, and assist with the adverse effects of UV radiation exposure. It is soothing and healing to sunburned skin.
Aloe Vera Sunburn Relief (makes 4 oz) 4 oz Aloe Vera gel 15 drops Lavender EO 10 drops Vitamin E oil 5 drops Calendula EO 2- 3 drops Peppermint EO Mix all ingredients, and apply to the skin as often as desired. Store in a glass container in the refrigerator to increase the cooling effect. Chamomile
Green Tea
Green Tea Compress Make an infusion by pouring boiling water over green tea and allow the mixture to sit for 15- 20 minutes. Once the infusion has cooled, strain the leaves and retain the liquid. Soak a clean cloth in the liquid, and then place on the sunburned area for 5-10 minutes. Do this several times a day. Oatmeal
Chamomile is gentle, relaxing and healing for the skin.
Oatmeal is wonderful to add to the bathwater at any time. It is soothing to the skin and is especially beneficial for sunburned skin.
Use a chamomile tea bag as if you were making chamomile tea and then chill it in the refrigerator.
Soothing Oatmeal Bath (makes 1 bath treatment)
Alternatively, you can buy a chamomile hydrosol from aromatherapy stores. Both the cold chamomile tea and the chamomile hydrosol can be used as a cold compress to the affected area, or poured into a mister and sprayed onto the skin. Chamomile After-Sun Spray (makes 4 oz)
2 cups Oatmeal ¼ cup Soda Bicarbonate (baking soda) ½ cup Chamomile flowers ½ cup Lavender buds 2- 4 tbsp Green tea leaves Place all ingredients in a muslin bag or cheesecloth, tie under the tap, and draw a LUKEWARM bath. Soak for 10- 15 minutes. (Hot water will dry and irritate the skin).
2 oz Aloe Vera gel 2 oz Chamomile hydrosol 5 drops Chamomile EO
Lavender
Mix all ingredients, pour into a spray bottle, and apply to the skin as often as desired. Store in refrigerator to increase the cooling effect.
Lavender is beneficial for any type of burn, including sunburns. It offers immediate relief and healing, and may accelerate the healing process.
Lavender Healing Oil (makes 4 oz) Note: This recipe may be used AFTER the sunburned skin has started to heal
Creating a Healthy Lifestyle
4 oz Jojoba oil 20 drops Lavender EO 10 drops Vitamin E oil Mix all ingredients in a bottle, and apply as needed. Perfect for using after an oatmeal or baking soda bath. Use this oil after the sunburn has begun to heal. Do NOT apply a carrier to a fresh burn. It will increase heat and discomfort. Peppermint & Green Tea Cooling Mist (makes 4 oz) 6 oz Distilled water 2 tbsp Dried peppermint leaves 1 tsp Green tea leaves Make an infusion with the peppermint and green tea leaves. To make an infusion, pour boiling water over the herbs, cover and allow to cool at room temperature. Then strain the mixture. Discard the herbs and place the tea in a glass spray bottle and refrigerate. When chilled, it may be misted onto healing skin (i.e. skin that does not have blisters caused by sunburn). Use it as often as desired. The tea can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days (after which, a new infusion should be made). This recipe is also a refreshing facial toner. *None of the above recipes are a substitute for medical treatment. You should always have a full discussion with your medical practitioner.
Primrose Williams has studied Aromatherapy and Reflexology in Hong Kong since 1993 and holds a number of certifications. She has a deep interest in both subjects and has given personal consultations by way of holistic advice and customized aromatic blends. To learn more about Aromatherapy, Reflexology, and Reiki, contact Primrose at primrose@magnifyyou.com
Lately, my writings have explored various wine themes, such as how to pair specific wines with certain foods, the art of the winemaking process and wine itself. Truly in my heart, I feel that I must share with you the healthy, often unknown, components of wine. Despite what society would have you believe, mainly that alcohol is a “forbidden fruit”, certain beverages that contain alcohol are actually beneficial to your health in moderation. Wine is not easily compared to other alcoholic drinks for its health benefits. Life is about moderation, such as enjoying an intake of a glass of wine a day. Like anything we do, there is no reason to go overboard and push our bodies to a point that we cannot handle physically. Our bodies are the fruit of the womb in which we need to manage and take care of. Wine carries wonderful properties such as polyphenols, antioxidants and cholesterol. That’s right, even cholesterol. There is such thing as good cholesterol, which helps play a role in the development of atherosclerosis (the narrowing of arteries) and heart disease. Polyphenols are a group of chemical substances found in plants, characterized by the presence of more than one unit or building block per molecule. Resveratrol, a polyphenol found in wine, has almost magical powers in animals. It has shown to extend the lifespan of fruit flies, who definitely enjoy their fair share of wine consumption! Resveratrol reduces inflammation, protects against the adverse effects of obesity, and is essentially a modern day fountain of youth, which has existed for centuries.
These effects are acknowledged through high doses, which could be equivalent to over 100 bottles of wine. Resveratrol is found in the stems, leaves, and skins of the grape. Although a glass or two of red wine each day may lower the risk of heart disease, one recent study shows that alcohol-free red wine works just as well. Resveratrol is also present in purple grape juice, red and purple grapes, and peanuts. However, because of the fermenting process, Resveratrol levels are higher in red wine than other natural sources. Red wine has about three times as much Resveratrol as grape juice. Today Resveratrol is being considered one of the main and most beneficial elements found in red wine. Studies have shown that red wine, especially Resveratrol, can help prevent colds, increase the levels of HDL (good) cholesterol, lower the risk of Alzheimer's, reduce the size and number of fat cells in the body, reduce the risk of prostate cancer, and has anti-inflammatory properties. Resveratrol is known to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, anti-mutagenic, anticancer, neuroprotective, and antiaging properties. As a bonus, it may also beat aspirin, a chemically made compound, at its own game in terms of cardiovascular protection. Resveratrol protects heart health by limiting the effects of cardiac fibrosis, a hardening of the heart tissue, as found in new animal research. The extensive research showing that Resveratrol has a major impact on heart health could increase the use of this polyphenol as a supplement. One of the other aspects that recommend Resveratrol as a
proven anti-cancer agent is the fact that it combats linoleic acid. This acid, found mainly in Western diets, transforms to a hormone-like substance that may stimulate cancer growth. Resveratrol enhances the ability of vitamin D found in our bodies to inhibit the fast growth rate of cancer cells, thus stopping the further spread of the disease. Resveratrol is still a relatively new ingredient to the supplement industry, and at this time is not currently supplied by European grape product companies. There are some Resveratrol supplements available in the US, while European industries remain wary over its regulatory status. Resveratrol supplements are usually combined with grape extracts or other antioxidants. To get the health benefits of red wine without the impact of alcohol, you can purchase Resveratrol and mixed red wine polyphenols in capsule form. One capsule of red wine polyphenols is approximately equal to the polyphenol content of one bottle of wine. As we cannot drink over a 1000 bottles of wine a year, which equates to 3 bottles a day to stay healthy, in moderation this supplement is definitely a wise alternative. Is the society we live in currently providing the best healthy lifestyle for us? No! The ones that govern our society do not focus on teaching people how to change their lifestyle, but mean to allow more companies to produce the toxic products we take, in order to claim that drugs are needed to cure our various ailments. This allows pharmaceutical companies to continue to fill their pockets. As stated by Dr. Edward F. Group, “healthcare systems are not a healing model for vibrant health the natural way, but a disease
management system, focused on the ‘lowest common denominator’ of human well-being”. The way to make change is to begin on your own, and be accountable for yourself. It begins by keeping a positive frame of mind, through the air we breathe, the environments in which we live in, the water we drink, and to constantly take care of our bodies and minds. If there are areas which you a not happy with in your life, empower yourself to make the change to best suit yourself and shift your mind set toward this positive direction. *Please note, although the information contained in this article is taken from valid research and studies, nothing in this article should be used as medical advice. Please consult a physician or doctor concerning alcohol consumption in relation to your personal health and lifestyle. Paul Lizak is the President of awardwinning, third generation Legends Estates Winery. His passions include wine, world travel, great food, and more wine! His experience as a professional speaker, columnist and brand director for Red Diamond Wave and other global companies allow Paul to bring new insights and unique qualities to the many facets of business. Contact Paul at paull@magnifyyou.com
Mudras (Hand Gestures) and
How They Can Aid Your Meditation I have been working with mudras or hand gestures a lot over the years and thought I would explain what they are and also how they can aid your meditative practise and make it even more effective. I first came across mudras when I started Bharatanatyam, a South Indian classical dance form, at the age of 11. The mudras or hand movements of dance all have meanings and the dance is like a play with music as the story is acted or danced out. The word mudra comes from the ancient language of Sanskrit and its literal meaning is ‘seal’. Mudras can be hand, arm or body gestures and they have been noted not only in Indian classical dance, but also in yoga, in Buddhism with the Buddha often pictured depicting a mudra and in meditation. There are hundreds of mudras documented in the various arts and with each there is a different meaning associated to it. A very common one in all cultures is the
prayer or ‘namaskara’ mudra with all fingers of both hands touching each other and often at the chest. In this article I am specifically going to explain some meditation mudras and how they can aid your own practise. Mudras are useful in meditation as they stimulate energy in the body and by doing heighten the meditative experience, therefore making the meditation more effective. The first mudra I would like to explain is the knowledge or in Sanskrit, ‘gyan’, mudra. This is the tip of the index finger and tip of the thumb touching and the other fingers straight. This mudra, as its name suggests, is good for increasing knowledge or intelligence; it is good for improving memory, concentration and can develop creativity. I would say this is the most useful mudra for meditation and a great place to start. When beginning to meditate have the palms upwards on the knees and gently touch the tip of the index finger and thumb together. The mudra can either be used more defined with the fingers straight or more relaxed depending on how you feel and also the ease with which you can carry out the mudra. Once you start your meditation, so either on the breath, positive image or whatever kind of meditation you are
doing, you should start to feel the stimulus of the mudra. There may be an increase of heat in the body or more specifically the fingers. If the fingers come away from a mudra whilst in meditation do not force them back - it could be that enough energy has been obtained by the body from the mudra and it is not needed anymore.
this mudra will ultimately enhance inner harmony, patience and serenity. The mudra is performed with the tip of the thumb touching the tips of the middle and ring finger.
Another great mudra to try is the life or ‘prana’ mudra, which is good for life. This mudra is excellent for improving the immune system of the body and therefore the whole of your life. It also improves poor circulation and it good to improve concentration. In this mudra, the tip of the thumb touches the tip of the little and ring finger. Mudras are best done by both hands, but if they prove to be difficult at first, you can practise just with one hand until you get comfortable with the movements. The prana mudra correlates with the prana vayu or upward moving air in the body. This improves the upward forces in the body. To harmonise and balance, we should also improve the downward air forces which are called apana vayu and the next mudra I want to discuss is the apana mudra, translated as the elimination or release mudra.
These are just three mudras but ones which I feel will be hugely beneficial to you in your meditative practice and also in everyday life. It takes time to meditate effectively and these mudras can aid this process and also make your meditation so much stronger. I have found that the more you can take the time out to meditate and focus within, the happier and focused your outer will be. If you have any questions regarding mudras or meditation in general, please e-mail me at bindis@magnifyyou.com. I would also love to hear how you get on. Bindi Shah is an inspirational life coach who runs meditation courses and workshops from Saltdean, England. She created the ‘Live The Life You Dream Of…’ programme which combines her background in Ayurveda, Life Coaching, and Meditation to help people achieve their dreams and desires while enhancing their physical and emotional wellbeing. Contact Bindi at bindis@magnifyyou.com
The elimination or apana mudra is good at releasing toxins and waste products from the body. Not only at a physical level, but at the emotional level, this mudra is good for eliminating negative thoughts. So any types of toxins, whether physical or emotional can be eliminated. The mudra helps any problems there may be with the menstrual cycle and is good to use in conditions of constipation. Due to the release of negativity and toxins,
Happy Birthday Julia! August is a special month for those that love Julia Child: On the 7th, Julie & Julia, a movie that intertwines the lives of two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends...until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible, opens. The role of Julia Child is played by Meryl Streep. Then, on the 15th, people all over the country will celebrate Julia Child’s birthday by cooking her recipes or dining at their favorite French restaurant. Julia Child (born Julia Carolyn McWilliams August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American chef, author and television personality, who introduced French cuisine and cooking techniques to the American mainstream through her many cookbooks and television programs.
Her most famous works are the 1961 cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking and the television series The French Chef, which premiered in 1963 and showcased her fabulous persona. I had to the privilege of meeting Julia Child in early 2000. I was employed at Sur La Table and one morning when I walked into work, I saw a memo that simply said, “Julia is coming!” I was so excited I danced around the back of the store. I was finally going to meet Julia Child! On the morning of the book signing the whole staff was at the store ready to greet her. The line of customers, waiting to meet her, snaked through the store and out the door as far as one could see. Everyone was eagerly awaiting her arrival.
We all greeted her and then she sat down at a table surrounded by eager fans and she began to sign her books. She was gracious, kind and answered as many questions as she could. She was supposed to sign books for an hour and a half, but she did not stop until every single book was signed. The one thing that stays with me was how she made each person feel like she was there just for them. Once she finished signing the last person’s book, she came into the back of the store where she chatted with us, posed for pictures and signed our books. Finally it came time for her to say good bye. It was sad to see her go, and it was even harder to hear of her passing, but I still have my signed copy of “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”. Each time I cook out my signed books, I still flip back and look at her signature and feel so blessed to have been in her presence for that small window of time. Cheese and Bacon Quiche For a 9-inch quiche, serving 6 Recipe from The Way to Cook. Seasonings: salt, freshly ground pepper and nutmeg A 9-inch prebaked shell 6 crisp strips of cooked bacon 1/2 cup coarsely grated Swiss cheese. The custard: 3 large eggs blended with enough milk or cream to make 1 1/2 cups.
beans or pie weights. Bake crust until sides of crust are set, about 18 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Pierce bottom of crust all over with fork. Continue to bake until bottom is set and pale golden, about 14 minutes longer. Remove from oven and cool in pan on rack. Amy Wilcox Doebler is the owner of Mia Cucina, a unique facility that will house & lease 5 health department approved kitchens, opening in the San Fernando Valley in 2009. Originally inspired by her mother’s great cooking skills and her father’s passion for food, she has over 10 years of professional experience as a personal chef, recipe developer, writer, and teacher. Contact Amy at amywd@magnifyyou.com
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Break up the pieces of bacon and stew them in the bottom of the shell. Sprinkle on all but a spoonful of the cheese. Season the custard and pour in to within 1/8 inch of the rim; sprinkle on the rest of the cheese. Bake 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffed and browned. With fresh fruit, this makes a lovely breakfast. I also enjoy serving this quiche with a salad for a light lunch or dinner. Pate Brisee Tart Crust Makes one 9-inch tart crust Recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking.
8-inch-diameter tart pan Dried beans or pie weights
Directions: Whisk flour, salt, and sugar in medium bowl. Add butter and shortening; rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 4 tablespoons cold water. Work mixture with fingertips until dough comes together in moist clumps, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic; chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt Pinch of sugar 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 2 tablespoons plus 3/4 teaspoon chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces 4 tablespoons (or more) cold water
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 400°F. Roll out dough on floured work surface to 10-inch round. Carefully transfer dough to 8-inch tart pan. Press dough onto bottom and about 1 1/2 inches up sides of pan, pressing to adhere to sides. Fold down and roll 1/2 inch of dough sides inward, forming double-thick edge at top of crust sides. Using dull edge of small knife, make small indentations at 1/2-inch intervals on double-thick edge. Chill 20 minutes.
Kneed
Line crust with foil; fill with dried
Effective Shading with Landscape Trees The use of shade trees, and proper placement of them, can result in significant reductions in the high cost of cooling homes and commercial buildings. In addition, outdoor living areas become inviting for more activities and property values are increased.
Exterior shading is seven times more effective than interior cooling.
vegetable gardens, and areas for sun or shade-loving plants
A wall in full sun transmits three times the heat of a shaded wall; an unshaded roof adds twice the heat of a shaded one to the interior of a structure.
In addition to providing shade, trees serve many important landscape functions. They make an effective windbreak, sound barrier, and dust or pollen filter; and when planted alone or in groups, trees enclose and separate outdoor spaces or can serve as an architectural extension of a building.
A dense tree canopy will screen out at least 80 percent of the solar radiation that falls on a person, outdoor living area, or building in full sun. This can reduce maximum high temperatures inside a typical house by 20 percent.
When creating successful landscapes that are livable for as much of the year as possible, we must learn to work with the sun. We must know how to take advantage of the warmth of the winter sun and how to provide cool summer shade when and where it’s needed. To do this effectively, it is necessary to understand the sun’s daily and seasonal patterns of movement.
Trees are used to frame a structure and relate that structure to the surrounding landscape.
The longest day of the year is June 22, the summer solstice. On that day, the sun reaches its highest point overhead. The opposite is true on December 22, the winter solstice. The sun is low on the horizon, and takes a short time to move from east to west, accounting for short winter days. These two days are the annual extremes.
When used as a background, trees help to break the roof line of a structure or accent a particular area or feature of the landscape. Specimen trees stand individuals and provide qualities in the landscape.
out as dramatic
In many situations, trees can serve one or more of these functions as well as offering foliage color, growth habit, flowering and fruiting, which will also affect the choice of a landscape tree. Due to their varying sizes and forms, trees are the most effective plants in the landscape for controlling solar radiation. With the inevitable increase in energy costs, there are more and more reasons to take advantage of trees natural shading capacity for both indoor and outdoor living areas. Trees are attractive and provide a psychological, as well as an, actual cooling effect. Consider the following points:
The sun has two patterns of movement, daily and yearly. Throughout the day it moves in an arc from east to west.
At the spring equinoxes (March 21 and September 24, respectively) day and night are of equal length. As the days lengths and seasons change, so do the shadow directions and lengths. When using trees to maximize the collection of winter heat and to minimize the impact of summer sun, some important points are: Use deciduous trees in areas where summer shade is desired, but winter sun is necessary for heat collection. Take care not to block rooftop solar collectors (yours or neighbors). Consider the height of the mature tree when choosing your plant materials. Since shadows move throughout the year, this should be considered when planning outdoor activity areas,
The landscape should be an integral part of the energy design of a building. As one of the most important elements in the landscape, trees can truly be an attractive and effective means of environmental modification. Consult your local garden center for shade trees in your climate zone. Shelley Smith is a Horticulturist and Landscape Designer with well over 30 year’s experience. She owns a Landscape Design Company based in Gilbert, Arizona. Contact Shelley with your gardening questions at shelleys@magnifyyou.com
Picking Up The Pieces
broken teacups and tea pots, holiday ornaments, frames, tchotchkes of all types and even beloved family heirlooms. When my youngest boy threw a football that caused my Grandmother’s beautiful antique English creamer to fall to the floor and break into pieces he said, “Hey mom another cool thing for the mosaic box.” Because I am a bit of a minimalist, I actually have been secretly relieved to part with things that I might otherwise have to continue to store and care for. Although I was sad to see my Grandmother’s antique creamer in pieces, rather than get upset I decided to go along with my son’s enthusiasm. Jake helped me clean up the mess and put the salvageable pieces into the box. Throughout our lives we will find that we need to put our life’s broken pieces in our emotional mosaic box and see if we can find a perspective that will allow us to create something new and beautiful with our left over pieces. It is true sometimes we need to be very creative to recreate. Many times we can benefit from someone else’s input or support. As in nature, after chaos and upheaval comes a time for re-ordering, healing and repair. In any moment we choose, we can begin again. Grace offers all of us the opportunity to begin again. If we are deliberate, determined and dedicated, in the place of ruin we may build something more beautiful than that which existed before. Dr. Jeanine Austin is a doctor of life coaching for women around the world. She is passionate about helping women live a joyful and authentic life. Dr. Jeanine uses cutting edge tools and/or spiritual perspectives which assist her clients in living actualized lives. Contact Dr. Jeanine at drj@magnifyyou.com
(My son in front of the mosaic fireplace in Scottsdale)
Since my boys were toddlers, I’ve always had a “mosaic box”. Whenever anything is broken in the house my boys know that we will put the broken pieces in the box and later create something from the broken pieces. Over the years, we’ve had a bit of everything in the box:
Plan Z We all know Murphy and his law that tells us that if something can go wrong, it will; and we know that the Law of Attraction warns us not to focus on what we don’t want… but somewhere in between there is a really important event that you have to get ready for and you’ve got to be ready for anything. I personally don’t think there’s anything wrong with planning for everything I can think of. Sure, I have to imagine what could go wrong, but with every disaster my mind comes up with, I also imagine a solution for each one. The key here is not in preparing for FAILURE, but in preparing for SUCCESS in every situation. What’s the best that can happen? OK, let’s start from the top. The first thing to envision is the ultimate success – the presentation goes off perfectly, all the technology works like a charm, the audience is wooed and wowed, and you get a standing ovation, the birds are singing and all is right with the world!
Now I know he’s not talking about event planning, but the advice is still good. Every little piece is a point of success, or potential failure, so it’s crucial to know what you have, what you need and what’s got to go where. This is your puzzle, after all, and if you miss even one little piece, you’re going to notice it. At this phase of the game, you can’t over-prepare. The more you know about, the more you have to work with. The Backup Plan The next part of the Preparation Game is to play ‘What If?’ What if this doesn’t work? What if that doesn’t arrive? Imagine everything going right except that one little thing… then come up with a plan to succeed without whatever that ‘thing’ is. Then just have that on your list of ‘Things to do’.
That’s a really great place to start, because by knowing what results you want, you can figure out all the elements you’re going to need to make that happen.
For example, I’ve had presentations ready to go on my laptop, only to find out that the laptop doesn’t work with the projector. Imagine if that was all I planned for; I’d be dunk.
The Plan MC Hammer had it right. In his song “Can’t Touch This” he shouts, “Break it down!”
However, I arrive equipped with a copy of the presentation on a flash drive… AND a copy burned onto a DVD. The Backup to the Backup But you know and I know that it doesn’t stop there… What if their laptop doesn’t have a port for the drive or a DVD drive (hey, that can happen!). That’s why I always take it to an even-deeper level. I email a copy of the presentation to myself, in case they have internet access… AND a printed copy of the presentation. I bring this down to the lowest level that I can think of. It’s what I call ‘Plan Z’. It may seem like ‘over kill’ at that point, but when you’re standing in front of a large audience with a broken projector and bad sound system, that isn’t the time to WISH you had done something. Again, plan for SUCCESS all the way down to you Plan Z. What’s the worst that can happen? So all this involves thinking ‘what’s the worse that can happen?’ because, you know Murphy, it certainly can get
worse. So I go there, to that dark place, and you know what I do with it? I shine a light on it… the brightest I can find. When you do that, you discover that there really aren’t monsters under the bed; that the shadows are just shadows and when you see them for what they really are, none of it is really THAT bad. More than likely (and I’m talking 99% of the time) the worst is NOT going to happen. Sure, there may end up to be one or two bumps along the way, but when you look back on it, you will see that most of what you planned for wasn’t needed (but good to have ‘just in case’) Knowing that, and being prepared for anything, can be a real boost for your confidence… and a real boost to your event, as well. Raise the lowest point So now that you’ve seen the lowest point, you have a great opportunity to raise up the entire event... just by raising the lowest point. What I mean by that is this – if the ‘worst’ that can happen is still excellent, everything else is just icing on the cake. Stay on target Once the event arrives, it’s time to put away all of the preparation. At that point, you have everything you need, so shift your focus back to that Ultimate Success moment. That’s your target, so stay focused on that. Murphy doesn’t have a ticket for this event, so just keep your eye on the target, and you will reach it. Go with the flow There is this magical moment where just beyond the ‘Difficult’ is that ‘Ease’. A sparrow relaxes as it hits top
speeds in flight; music seems to pour out through the fingers of a concert pianist or a basketball player seems to float to the basket. It’s at that point where all the preparation flows into action. BUT… it doesn’t happen and then you relax. You RELAX and then it happens. When you ‘go with the flow’ and you discover that Murphy snuck in through the back door… it just won’t throw you for a loop. So what if something crops up… you’re prepared, you’re focused on your target, and you’re relaxed! You can handle anything! Laugh and Learn Finally, when all is said and done, take the time to look back. Did something not go exactly as planned? Great! Now you have another lesson to add to your plan. All the things that show up along our path aren’t there to block you. They’re there to be your stepping stones to even greater success. …And that is the Ultimate Plan. Stuart "GuruStu" Rosen is a motivational author, speaker and cartoonist, whose work appears in "101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life" and "Walking With the Wise". He also co-hosts "Manifesting the Positive" Radio with the effervescent Leyla Hur. Contact Stuart at gurustu@magnifyyou.com
Buddha’s Wife Gabriel Constans (Gabriel Constans has written for numerous newspapers, magazines, web sites, radio and literary journals in North America, Europe, Oceania, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. He has 12 books published in the U.S. and has served the community since 1974 as a grief counselor, chaplain, social worker and mental health consultant at the Santa Cruz Integrative Medicine and Chi Center. His experience includes work with an innovative mental health center; the Impact Program at California State prisons and as a drug and alcohol counselor for teens and ex-convicts. He is the co-parent to five children in the United States and an extended family at El Shaddai Youth Center and orphanage in Rwanda. “Buddha’s Wife” tells a fascinating story, little known in the west, about the woman whom Buddha left behind. Gabriel Constans focuses the reader’s attention on the strong and complicated women who surrounded Buddha making us re-think the nature of spiritual life.)
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“But surely, they have not allowed you “What a liar—a thoughtless, selfish to take orders and don robes like the liar!” “I dreamed of my visit to find men?” I asked, running to keep up. “Come on!” Pajapati pulled frantically Siddhartha in Uruvela after leaving Rajagaha and our meeting with “Oh no,” she replied. “Being of service at my sleeve. “Don’t make a scene.” Davidia. to the followers of Gotama is reward “How could he leave us?!” I said loudly, enough.” tears sliding down my cheeks. “He Pajapati was reluctant to go out of our way, not because she didn’t wish to We watched the woman pour her jug of didn’t have to leave us!” listen to Siddhartha’s teachings and water into the cups of the men with Pajapati wrapped her arm around me learn more about the freedom he robes and shaved heads. There were and lead me away as people watched claimed to have discovered, but not many women present, but one or and listened. because of the pain and agony she two I recognized. I saw Yasa’s wife knew it would cause me. But I insisted, and mother, who had left the province, “He’s a demon!” I cried. “He’s and Pajapati had learned long ago that unexpectedly, six months earlier. destroyed every dream.” I am not easily swayed once I’ve made Rumors that they had gone to follow up my mind. the Tathagata circulated freely, but I “Come, come,” Pajapati soothed, her didn’t realize they had not only sought eyes wet with sympathy. “I Though the Ordained Followers of the the Buddha, but had literally joined understand.” Teacher from Sakya, as they were their husband and son as lay disciples. called by villagers, already numbered The realization that, unlike most “Understand?” I stopped and stared. in the thousands, it took some time to practices of the day, one did not have “How can you understand? He left me; find them in the vihara (sanctuary) on to leave their family to follow a religious he left Rahula. He discarded us like a the outskirts of Uruvela. The vihara life threw a cold bucket of pain in my sack of rocks. For what?” I motioned had been donated by Siddhartha’s face. I stood as frozen as snow on the towards the followers. “Adoration for a devotees Anathapindika and Jeta. The peak of a Himalayan mountain in coward—a man who talks about area was called Jetavana and the winter. Pajapati was hit with the same peace, but leaves his family in followers called themselves the Union realization. She saw the shock on my torment?” of Bhikkhus. They were protected in face and realized what I was thinking. Jetavana, yet seldom remained there “Stop it!” Pajapati shouted, dragging long and often slept out in the open. “Yasodhara,” she said. “Let’s get out of me into the waiting carriage. “That’s here.” my step-son you’re talking about, and I was taken aback to see women at the he’s the furthest thing from a demon camp, as I had always been under the I couldn’t move or reply. I’ve ever known.” impression that they were forbidden. Pajapati asked a woman carrying “Come on.” Pajapati pulled at my Siddhartha had been informed later water to a group of men if she was with sleeve. “Let’s go. The carriage is that day about a disturbance on the waiting.” the Buddha. outskirts of the gathering. Something about a rich woman yelling obscenities “I am a lay disciple,” she replied. “We I remained immobile. My hands and her mother escorting her out of the follow our husbands and sons who opened and closed stiffly. My fingers area. He wished them peace. have been called to live a life of turned white and my face crimson red. renunciation and seek liberation from To read “Buddha’s Wife” in its entirety, visit desire and suffering.” She continued “That idiot!” I exclaimed, so loudly that http://buddhaswife.com/index.html to purchase Pajapati tried to hide inside her sari. copies walking and we followed.