Summer 2018 by Wheel Of Life Magazine

From the Editor

Wheel Of Life #3-644 Portland St, Suite 413 Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

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Tel: 1-902-404-8677

ISSN - 2561-8598

Welcome to Wheel of Life Magazine! Robin Williams, Kate Spade, Anthony Bourdain, and countless others. These are people that inspired us, made us laugh, brought us beauty, created things that enhance our own lives. These are people that, although they smiled to the world and appeared to be happy, the reality is they were hurting on the inside. Depression has become a major health issue in our society. However, this is a disease that cannot be visibly recognized. We are not aware of the thoughts and feelings of those we love and admire, until it is too late. How can we, as a society help? If we cannot see the signs, what can we do? Posting in social media a phone number for a mental health support centre is clearly not enough. People that suffer from depression do not reach out, they in fact, silently withdraw. In a “social media society,” we have in fact become less social. We “connect” online, going days, sometimes weeks without seeing a single person. We can portray online how happy we are, so no one will worry about us. It is time to take our society back. Check in on your family and friends. Call them, don’t text them. Visit them, not inbox them. Hear their voice, see their physical state. And when you sense something is not right, take action. Take them out for a coffee instead of sending a heart or smiley face on social media. Invite them for dinner or a paint night instead of sending them an inspirational meme. We can make a difference; however, it means taking physical action. Do not tell people you care about them, show them you love them! This includes the people that seem to be happy and “have it all together,” because perhaps they don’t and all they need is someone to drop in and give them a hug. You can be the difference that will save someone’s life.

Blessings, Angela

Published by Blue Crow Inspirations Editor Design Photography Consultant We recognize and respect all copyrights. Photographs Unless otherwise stated, graphics are sourced from Pixabay Advertising Creative and Design - Amanda Salsman Media Kits are available upon request. Contributors - Tess Adams, Kelly Aiello, Nanci Barton, Ana Bokstrom, Sudie Crouch, Lisa Falcon, Rachel Hart, Carolyn Laurie, Maria Morales, Bernette Sherman, Holli Smith, Rylee Smith, Leann Crook Cover Photo Layout and Design Background Photo Photo of Tom Campbell - Courtesy of Tom Campbell © 2018 Wheel Of Life Magazine. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used, stored, transmitted or reproduced in any way without the prior written permission of the Editor. The information in this publication is deemed, as far as we are aware, to be accurate at the time of publishing. Wheel Of Life Magazine, it’s owner, contributors, and publishers cannot be held liable for errors or inaccuracies in its contents, contributors, advertisers, and platforms, nor be responsible for products, services and pricing by its contributors and advertisers. If you wish to submit articles, we welcome submissions. We do reserve the right to accept or decline submissions. We will attempt to respond to declined submissions, but do not guarantee a reply. In submitting an article to us, you warrant the information is correct, is your own work or have rights/permission to supply it (including illustrations and photographs), and you automatically grant Wheel Of Life Magazine a license to publish your submission in whole or a part thereof, and any edited versions in any issue. We assume all unsolicited material is for publication, unless otherwise stated, and we reserve the right to edit, amend or adapt all submissions. Disclaimer: The information provided in the Wheel Of Life Magazine is to add to your knowledge, understanding and experiences. It is intended to give you motivation and inspiration to better your life in the ways that are the best for you. We recommend researching any suggestions offered in the magazine to see if it is right for you, and be sure any health recommendations are checked with your care provider. The Wheel of Life Magazine, it owner, staff, agents, and volunteers are not liable for any loss, injury, or damage that may arise directly or indirectly from the use of any information given in the magazine. Any information and methods provided in the magazine are not necessarily the opinions or beliefs of the owner, publisher, staff, agents, etc and do not make any claims or guarantees of any sort as to the effectiveness thereof.

Contents 05

The Shifting World - A Millennial’s Perspective

The 5 W’s of the Ketogenic Diet

How one youth deals with the challenges of our current time.

10 15 19 20 22 25 28 32 40 43

A nutritionist gives us the facts on how and why this diet works.

Spiritual Journey - Voices in Time Part 2 Anne shares with us a change encounter with a Bedouin.

Words of the Wise wisdom from her mother.

Pointing Fingers back at us represent.

The Window In The Black Box

How one woman overcame adversity to become the person she wanted to be.

Three Easy Steps To Give Your Inner Critic The Boot

Tess shows us how to turn around our negative self-talk.

Getting Out Of The Muck led her to her life’s purpose.

How I Stopped Being A Victim

The Soul Of Sustainability

How one woman is changing the victim landscape by blazing a new trail.

healthy life for her family in a toxic world.

Sudie shows us how to determine our life purpose.

Loving Yourself Through the Pain Leah shows us how to heal from our own trauma.

A Book Review - Reasons to Stay Alive Carolyn reviews Matt Haig’s book on dealing with depression.

Tom Campbell,

Forgiving My Father

What I Learned From The Trees

71 73

My Bitter-Sweet Surrender

One man’s story of how heart surgery

A Journey Around the World and Into Trans

How traveling helped Mark become his authentic self.

How trees and nature helped Nanci heal and then reform her life.

Make A Global Impact - Earth Day 2018

One woman’s aspiration to make every day Earth Day.

Physicist Are We Living In A Virtual Reality?

Tom shares with us his concepts of our reality.

How one daughter rewrote the story of her relationship with her father.

Where Did My Friends Go?

Dealing with the changing relationships in our life as we grow.

Grounding and Protection For The Sensitive Soul Practical tips to maintain balance in a chaotic world.

The Message In Numbers

The numbers we see repeatedly have something to tell us.

Write To Us

Has an article in the Wheel Of Life Magazine inspired or motivated you? We would love to hear all about it. Please submit your letters to to be included in a future issue.

Full names must be given to qualify for publishing. Letters may be edited for clarity and space.

Your Letters Dear Angela, The inaugural issue of Wheel of Life Magazine had many interesting articles; I would like to comment on, or rather commend you on, How to Teach Children about Energy. This article addresses something many parents have not realized would make their, and their children’s, lives much calmer and fuller. We are all energy, as is everything around us. How we react to, and interact with, for an adult, let alone someone who has yet to have experiences to draw upon. Youngsters are like sponges, picking up on their surroundings and learning how to be in this world. What a wonderful gift to impart to them early, how to calm themselves, how our interactions affect other things. I believe the world would be a calmer, happier, and yes even safer place, if all of us had the tools laid out in Amanda Salsman’s article. This is a must read for anyone who interacts with the younger set! Regards and best wishes, Jo Sovik

Dear Angela, Congratulations on the new e-magazine! It’s so refreshing to have access to such diverse and inspirational articles. I found the articles in the Spring 2018 issue to be very helpful and eye-opening. One that stands out for me is It’s time for a change! I am excited to start trying the mirror exercise that Tess describes in this article. How awesome would it be to feel toward ourselves? I can only imagine all the amazing things we would attract to ourselves if we found this inner peace. We can get so wrapped up in helping other people that we often forget about ourselves in the process. Tess has reminded me of how important self-care is in our daily lives! I’m grateful for the amazing writers that have contributed to this incredible e-magazine. Keep up the good work! Brandy Burrow Austin, TX Dear Editor, Thank you for assembling a wonderful, uplifting and thought provoking magazine. I found Embracing Change by Sudie Crouch provided 5 simple steps on accepting change. I love change (at least that is what I tell myself) as long as I’m in control of the change. However, when I’m to ensure change doesn’t happen. It’s manipulate the outcome of the situation to what I think it should be. This creates more drama than if I would just accept simple steps Sudie describes are clear, precise and easy to follow. It helped me to embrace change for what it is and not what I think it should be. Change is good; you just have to be willing to accept it for what it is. Lots of Love, Margaret Dalla Torre New York

The Shifting World A Millennial’s Perspective By Rylee Smith

As youths, we face many challenges. They say it’s a time of fun and irresponsibility, yet we are faced with so many decisions. Since many things in the world are new, of learning. For some of us, our worlds change almost overnight, from having to focus on education to having to focus on getting a career. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have time to focus on having fun and connecting with people. After all, by connecting with people and lifting up others, we can create ripples of happiness that will spread. They say, “Laughter is the best medicine,” (Old Proverb) and I believe that’s true on a global scale too. We have the opportunity in this incredible time of change to make a difference, if not to the world as a whole, to the people around us, who will in turn affect the people around them. I try to remember it doesn’t cost us anything to share a smile.

The key to our own happiness lies within us, and a resolution to include more positivity and self-love into our lives can be the key to creating a more optimistic future. frame of mind. Sadly, thoughts of suicide, depression, stress, and anxiety plague many young people today. We live in a time that is ever changing, the old idea that a good education means a good job just no longer applies. In a way, we are and teachers, have never experienced a out how to survive in this new age of technology and information. Unfortunately, in this time of global connection, many folks feel very isolated. In a time of so many people and so many opportunities to connect, we often feel utterly alone.

Summer 2018

We must remember that we are never alone, for we are all a part of the greater Universe around us, a loving force that we can always tap into. At times we may feel broken, but in the loving light and healing. I’ve found that in times of grieving or inner turmoil, such as when I’ve felt scattered or alone, stressed out about what choices to make in my own life, meditation was especially helpful. I found that through meditation we can For the younger millennials and older between two worlds, the world we were born into and the world we live in now. We don’t see everything around us as completely normal like the younger kids do, but we weren’t totally used to the world of our parents either. When I was very young, the VCR was the standard movie player. Fax machines were still in use, and cell phones had big antennas. an electronic device, pretty much any adult could show me it’s features and how to use it. What was normal for me growing up isn’t going to be the same for my brother, who is thirteen years younger than me. There are so many good things about the time we live in. We have the opportunity to educate ourselves faster than ever. We don’t have to go to a school, or even to a library, in order to learn about the world around us. We are progressively becoming more accepting and we’re moving towards equality. An increasing number of people are environmentally conscious. We blatantly criticize all of our own society’s conventions, something we were seldom allowed to do so

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openly throughout history, making this a time which is conducive to revolution. However, there are downsides to the world we live in right now too. Some of us feel guilty living in this world. Our relationships with animals and the Earth have been severely diminished. Our culture and current media provides us with so much irrelevant information it would be impossible to digest all of it. There are social justice issues and environmental issues all around, and since we’ve improved so much at sharing information, we are constantly bombarded with bad news and negativity.

We feel stressed out, overwhelmed, and overworked. Traditionally these were feelings that adults had, leading to a mid-life crisis and so on. Yet today, most of the youths I know have described feeling this way too. It’s always been a stressful time in life, when we set out serious life partner. We are faced with many challenges we don’t really know how to handle. When I was a small child, I felt I could talk to any adult in my family about the near future and they would

know what was coming. They had a pretty good handle on their lives, and they could teach me about the world. They seemed to know what I would go through as an adult. However, now all that’s changed. Most of the adults I know are just as worried about what’s coming as my generation. In today’s world we just don’t know what to expect anymore. We don’t know what kind of an education we’ll need to succeed in life.

Yet I’ve found this concept all the more exciting. As a young child, I worried about what sort of an education I would need to be successful. I considered being a veterinarian, a psychologist, or a professional photographer. Instead, I decided to take a condensed program in Metaphysics, and follow my true passion, because I felt freed in this changing world from having to conform to the old standards. Since the world was changing, my visions were allowed to change too.

I didn’t have to go to school and stay locked into to one career for my whole life. I’m free to follow my passions and learn about whichever topics interest me. Of course, we still need a lot of people to go through the traditional our society, however, I do encourage you to follow your dreams and passions because ultimately if we are pursuing a career that makes us happy, we’ll around us.

Summer 2018

Not everybody is interested in the more traditionally sought-after jobs, but that’s okay, we should feel free to do our parts in society. Sometimes the littlest things can make the biggest difference. Sometimes I feel as though adults around us incorrectly assume that we operate in this new world of information, revolution, and technology. Perhaps some of us have, but I sure haven’t, and most of my friends haven’t either. We’re worried about our personal lives and the state of the planet. Unfortunately, some of us feel as though we don’t have anything to look forward to. Does a grim post-apocalyptic world of death and destruction wait for us around the next corner? Will there be nuclear war? Or can we look forward to an environmentally conscious, socially just world, full of more understanding and compassionate people than we know uncertainty, it’s no wonder many of the young adults of today struggle. We are all hurdling towards an unknown future, one that could bring about a time of peace and greater understanding, or one that could bring about the exact opposite. I think we must remain since there are most likely going to be many adjustments we’ll have to make in our lifetime. It’s okay to take things one step at a time. I feel it’s important to make sure that building a good future doesn’t mean we ignore the incredible freedom we have and enjoy this time of relative peace and prosperity. They tell us we are the future, while holding us back from becoming it. We need not wait to add our voices to the world.

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It is my belief that we must enjoy this time and do our parts to make a difference in the world. We need not spend our lives worrying about destruction, rather I believe we must spend our lives creating beautiful abundance and relationships, experiencing life and helping empower others, because only then are we able to stop the destruction. Wherever there is darkness there will always be hope and light. We have what it takes to build a better future for ourselves, so letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s take the initiative and brighten the world around us through acts of kindness and respect, by treating each other and the world around us with love and compassion. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time that we become the type of people who are ready to build a better future.

By Rylee Smith

Summer 2018

The 5 W’s of By Kelly Aiello Have you heard of the ketogenic diet? Perhaps you have but negative press you’ve come across. Or perhaps you don’t think keto is right for you. Let’s solve that right now, let’s discuss the facts of the who, what, where, when and why of the ketogenic diet, including results you may experience if you follow it correctly. What exactly is the ketogenic diet? The ketogenic diet, commonly referred to as keto, is a very high fat, moderate protein, and extremely low carbohydrate way of eating. This mimics fasting by altering the source of energy your body uses to operate. Instead of generating energy from the glucose derived from carbohydrates (which is normally the case), your body’s metabolism switches to burning fat for fuel. This fat can come from either your diet or your body’s own fat stores. Though this switch may not happen overnight, when you strategically restrict your carbohydrate intake for several days in a row, your body’s intelligence takes over. You enter a state of ketosis, and your body begins to break down fat for fuel. As this fat is broken down into usable energy, ketones or ketone bodies are created. The term ketosis, or what is commonly known as being “fat adapted,” simply refers to being in a state of burning these ketones for energy. The ketones then circulate in your blood, supplying your brain, organs and cells with ongoing useable energy. As attaining a state of ketosis requires your body to undergo a metabolic shift, you may experience some unwanted side effects during this brief transition phase, often referred to as the “keto everyone will experience these side effects. Your age, activity

the Ketogenic Diet level, gender, and overall health will all affect your metabolism, your bodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to become fat adapted, and to what degree you experience the keto There are many different iterations of the keto diet - just as there are many different individuals who have These variations are small adjustments in daily macronutrients based on individual nutritional needs and energy expenditure. Where and when did the ketogenic diet originate? It was originally designed by Dr. Russell Wilder at the Mayo Clinic nearly 100 years ago, to offer an alternative therapy for epileptic patients. Its development came about after doctors realized that fasting, or severe carbohydrate restriction, actually improved epileptic seizures, behaviour, and cognitive performance. It was particularly effective with epileptic patients who did not respond to conventional therapies. By the 1940â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, the diet was progressively replaced by new anticonvulsant medications. However, roughly a third of patients didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t respond to these medications, and most notably for children with epilepsy, keto was re-instated as a protocol for seizure management.

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The ketogenic diet evolved as a protocol for other neurological conditions including migraines, bipolar disorder, autism, brain cancer, traumatic brain injuries, ALS, Parkinsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and Alzheimerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Disease (which is now the number three killer in the US behind heart disease and cancer). Additionally, it is being employed to manage type 2 diabetes, control blood sugar levels, and promote weight loss.

many athletes have turned to the ketogenic diet to improve performance! Another, very important reason to adopt this lifestyle, might very well be to stave off Alzheimerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Disease proactively. such a diverse population, more and more nutritionists, myself included, are encouraging its use and/or using it themselves.

diet? keto diet. Feeding the brain the right kinds and percentages of fat can us desire, including improved memory and cognitive function in addition to weight management. It can also help strengthen the immune system, improve insulin sensitivity, balance hormones, regulate digestion, increase prevent certain diseases.

The ketogenic diet increases energy: the body is to get fuel inside damaged mitochondria. Unlike glucose, ketone bodies can enter the mitochondria completely intact. This helps the body release and recycle energy faster while using up less oxygen and creating less oxidative stress. In general, if you follow this protocol correctly, you stop eating sugar and promoted on keto are natural, whole foods that support the immune system and help the body work as it should.

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weight loss: If done correctly, there’s no doubt that the keto diet can help burn fat and promote weight loss. When you become fat adapted, and your body burns fat for fuel, eventually, it has no choice but to tap into its fat stores. But please keep in mind that it may not work for everyone and that it is possible to gain weight when increasing your intake of fat, even if they are quality fats. This can happen if your caloric intake exceeds your needs, or if you do not follow the diet correctly and aren’t actually in ketosis. It is neuroprotective: Certain ketone bodies are neuroprotective when used as an energy source by the brain. Additionally, high-fat diets have been shown to protect the brain and reduce the risk of dementia. If you happen to suffer from a traumatic brain injury, your risk of Alzheimer’s Disease has automatically increased, so eating a diet that protects the brain from it should be a “no-brainer.” Why does keto work? In general, keto works by switching the body’s metabolism to induce a fatburning state.

By focusing on high-quality fats with minimal carbohydrates, ketones, from the burning of fat, are used as a primary source of fuel. Carbohydrates found in pasta, bread, starches, fruit, and sugars are normally broken down into glucose and used by the body for immediate energy. But by restricting the intake of carbohydrates, there is not enough glucose to energize the cells. The body naturally responds by undergoing a metabolic shift so that it can burn fat for fuel instead. Once the body has shifted to this fatburning state, ketones are used as fuel throughout the body, including the brain. In fact, our brain actually prefers to run on ketones, which is why one when we follow it. Ketosis shows promising results not only for those with type 2 diabetes, brain injuries, nervous system and neurological disorders, but shows potential for the rest of us, too.

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Instead, load your plate with quality grass-fed meats, low-carb vegetables, and healthful fats. Some of the best fats to consume on the ketogenic diet are extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, MCT oil, avocados, avocado oil, nuts and seeds. The best lowcarb vegetables include leafy greens, asparagus, zucchini, spinach, broccoli, and other cruciferous veggies. As for protein, good sources include cage-free eggs, grass-fed beef, pasture-raised How does keto work? To become fat adapted and allow your body time to switch from burning glucose to burning fat for energy, the fewer carbohydrates you eat, the better. Some people do well consuming 50 grams of carbs per day, while others do best staying under 20 grams per day. As each person is biochemically unique with different nutritional needs, you may need to experiment with your daily macronutrients to discover the percentage of carbs you require to stay in ketosis. If you are starting out, I recommend being very restrictive with your carb intake much fat, protein, and carbohydrates you consume. Don’t worry; you don’t as there are many free macro-counter apps available to help you with this. Try to aim for 75% of your calories to come from healthy fats, 15-20% from protein, and 5% from carbohydrates. The easiest and healthiest way to achieve this is by eating real food! foods, grains, soda, and sugary products.

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nuts or nut butter. As a nutritionist, I understand that undertaking such a drastic change in eating habits can be daunting if not downright intimidating! So, stay tuned for my next article in this series to delve deeper into the do’s and don’ts of the ketogenic diet to help you do it right. Please keep in mind, as with any change in diet or lifestyle, it is always best to check with your doctor or healthcare provider to determine if the ketogenic diet may be right for you. By Kelly Aiello www.HappiHuman.com

Voices in Time Rescued by a Bedouin Part Two By Anne Louise O’Connell

All photos courtesy of Anne O’Connell

We had made it back to the hotel just before the heavens opened. It was such torrential rain that we opted to stay in and eat family style with our host, Yusef. It was a lively evening with an impromptu serenading by the hotel owner and a few local friends. By morning the rains had let up and as we pored over the tourist maps and guides, Yusef sidled up to us conspiratorially and winked. “You look like you might be up for a bit more of a challenge today,” he grinned. I was about to deny his statement, thinking about the cramps in my calves the night before but before I could stop myself the adventurer in me chimed in. “Sure, what would you suggest?”

The voice in my head wasn’t whispering, it was shouting… Tell him no! But I knew it was probably the only time I would be to continue. My mother always says you can sleep when you’re dead! “Well, when you come to the entryway for the Siq, there’s a small shack where you can hire a donkey,” he began. I knew exactly where he meant as we had seen it the day before. “Right behind the shack is an unmarked narrow and sort of covered with brush. use it. But the hike is spectacular… you see many beautiful things.”

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“Where does it go?” I ventured, my of me. “It cuts through the mountain on the opposite side to the Siq and then comes out at the Street of Facades.” “How long?” I started packing up the map. I knew then that we were going the road less travelled. “Oh, maybe two, three hours,” he waved his hand in the air. “Not long.” Considering we had hiked a full nine hours the day before (minus the 10 minute donkey ride we gave in to on the very last leg back through the Siq), this sounded like a piece of cake. We’d be back for lunch! Or, so I thought. It started out gangbusters. We found the pathway Yusef talked about right taste of chocolate pudding. We soon approached a narrowing in the path, and a group of people were heading towards us. “It doesn’t look safe,” said a man at the front of the group. “I don’t think it’s passable.” “Thanks,” I said as we continued past them. “We’ll see how far we get.” They were the last people we saw on the path that day. As I watched them disappear through the bramble that led back to the main path a gust of wind

lifted my hat from my head and tossed it back in the direction we came. I retrieved it as the gust followed me and danced around my ears. I was distracted. I should have listened to the wind but all I could think of was the adventure waiting to be had. all depends on how much scooching, crawling, squeezing, balancing, climbing and scrambling you’re up for. We were in ‘exploration’ mode so anything that didn’t seem life threatening, albeit uncomfortable, didn’t hold us back. At one point, we were almost horizontal, with hands on one wall and feet on another as we scooched along, attempting to keep our feet dry from narrow walls. One misstep later and I was lying in the muddy water. I laughed as I stood up in the ankle-deep stream and sloshed towards a dry ledge at the end. I was wet, but not hurt.

Spiritual Journey Vacations are becoming trips with purpose. Vacations are no longer reserved for tall drinks by the beach, or piling all the kids into the van for a cross country visit to Yellowstone or to visit family. We are seeking sacred places, high energy places, embarking upon pilgrimages. We want to experience ancient cultures, holy places. We want to not just visit them, we want to experience them. Do you have a story of a trip you took to a sacred place that you would like to share with us? Please e-mail your story and any accompanying photos to your own experiences and you own the photos or have permission to share them.

On the other side, the path was dry and it widened nicely. We were rewarded with even more spectacular views. The landscape was dotted with purple I was again in awe of the mountains surrounding us. As we progressed along the pathway it widened and narrowed every hundred yards or so in between sheer rock faces decorated with a cacophony of patterns. My camera snapped away at the chaotic swirls belaying a history of tumultuous weather with layers of carbon, marble and clay each denoting a new century. The perfect circles juxtaposed with jagged lines creating tapestries suitable for any art gallery wall. It was modern abstract, yet ancient art all at the same time. We kept trekking and marvelling, not really taking note of the time until we came to a halt as the path had widened and then dipped into what appeared to be a small lake that totally blocked the way. It was about a half mile across and then the path obviously took an upturn and dry land resumed. There was no way around it as it lapped against the walls of the mountains on either side. “How deep can it be?” I wondered out loud. We could both swim but I wasn’t climb up and go around it.” But, the cliffs were sheer and we didn’t bring our rappelling ropes I joked. We had never done any real rock climbing before and with my fear of heights it wasn’t on my ‘to do’ list. I was getting desperate as we were running out of ideas. I looked at my watch and it was already three o’clock. I didn’t think it was a good idea to turn back. We wouldn’t

make it out before dark. I couldn’t believe we had already been hiking six hours. The mud and other ‘water hazards’ had probably slowed us down. It dawned on me that when Yusef recommended the alternate pathway, he had forgotten how much rain had fallen lately. “Look there. It looks like a Bedouin.” I pointed way above to a tiny, turbaned, old man who was waving furiously at us and pointing to the water. He shook his head and then held up his hand like he wanted us to stop. Then he disappeared. A breeze rustled the thorny bush behind me and the nettles rubbed against the rock. Sssstaaay, it whispered. We heard a scrabbling and looked behind us and up. The little old man was lowering himself down to a small ledge, probably not much wider than the length of my foot. He braced himself and took the black rope that was wrapped around his head holding his white turban in place. He lowered it down towards us and he pointed to me and motioned for me to climb up. “Here, let me give you a leg up,” my companion crouched down and clasped his hands together with the palms up creating a step. I took a deep breath, put one foot in the cradle of his hands and heaved up to grab the rope. With a little pushing and the little man pulling, I made it to the ledge, heart pounding in my throat. The little man made the same cradle with his hands and looked up.

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I wasn’t sure I would be able to reach the top but spending the night in the gulley with more rain coming didn’t really appeal to me so I took a deep breath and placed my foot in his hands. My other foot slipped and just as I was losing my balance, he gave a great heave and shot me up with a strength I wouldn’t have believed if I hadn’t felt it myself. I was catapulted up and onto solid ground at the top of the cliff.

“Whatever he’s selling, I’m buying!” I looked at his offering and amidst the coins was an identical amulet as my other Bedouin angel had on her table of treasures. It was battered and worn and one of the turquoise stones was missing. I picked it up and held it in my hand. I could almost feel the energy pulsing from it.

I did a few tumbles and by the time I had gathered my wits about me and scrambled back to the edge and looked down, my companion was on the ledge ready for his ride. I backed away and prayed. He weighed a lot more than me and I was doubtful that the little Bedouin man could manage the same miracle with him. I almost shouted down that I would go for help when my companion tumbled over the edge and seconds later, our rescuer hopped up beside him. around him in a big bear hug but I stopped myself in time. I was in a Muslim country and it would be horrifying for him if I did that. I clamped my hands in front of my chest in prayer and bobbed my head up and down frantically so he would know just how much we appreciated his help. That was when I noticed that he was not more amazing was that on his feet was a pair of dusty, holey, black dress shoes. How he accomplished the feat of saving our asses is beyond me but we lived to tell the tale. He sheepishly reached into his pocket and brought out a handful of old coins. He wanted to sell us something. 18

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“How much for this and this,” I picked one of the old coins from his hand adding it to the amulet in mine. “Three dinar,” he said softly. I nodded and handed our rescuer the money, the equivalent of which was $US5. A soft breeze kicked up the dust and whisper I heard. The voice was right. recognized the Street of Facades in the distance that would lead us to the exit and home. We turned back to thank our rescuer again, but he had disappeared into the hills. My little amulet will always remind me to listen to the voices. But then again, if I had, I wouldn’t have the story of being rescued by a Bedouin. By Anne Louise O’Connell www.ocpublishing.ca

Words of the Wise

By Joanne Matheson

When I was young, I remember being upset about friends saying things about me behind my back. My mother would console me and say, “People don’t talk about you as much as you think they do. If they do, you need to feel sorry for them, as their lives must not be too interesting. Stand in your truth, then what they say will be meaningless. Always be kind.” At the time, it didn’t really cheer me up, as I was convinced she just didn’t understand the magnitude of the betrayal I was enduring. How could she even suggest I feel sorry for them, it was ME who should have all the sympathy. Years have gone by and I realize that what other people think of me, is really none of my business. If I can honestly state that I have been kind and standing in my truth, then what is there to talk about? Are they people I want in my life? It took me awhile to appreciate what she once told that sobbing little girl. Beverly Matheson (1938 – 2017) was a kind, soft-hearted woman who had a laugh that making a happy home for my Dad, brother and me, as we moved to different army bases throughout my childhood. She was recognized for her tireless volunteer she became a “Nana” and often joked, that had she known they were so much fun, she would have skipped being a mom and went right to the grandchildren. In the end, she was a victim of Alzheimer’s and she is dearly missed.

We would like to acknowledge the wisdom of those we love, that are no longer with us, and allow them to live on through their words. Did one of your family members, mentors or friends, who are no longer with us, have wise words of their own? Would you like to share them with us? Please send us their words, full name, how you want their name shown, with a short bio of who they were, and if you like, a photo. Please note you must own the photo or have permission to use it. Please e-mail to: wheeloflifemagazine@gmail.com

Summer 2018

Po i n t i n g Fingers Have you ever found yourself in a cycle of negativity, inability to grow, change or progress? No matter how you move, the cycle seems to follow you through life. We all have these cycles periodically throughout our lifetime. They could be problems with personality types, and/or starting a project and even relationship issues. These patterns are personal and as varied as each of us are. These are the obstacles that seem to stop or slow our progress in life. The fact we can recognize the cycle is a huge step to changing, then healing the cycle. Situations will continue to repeat until we learn the lessons that we are supposed to learn. Only then will our lives progress out of the cycle and move forward again. I have found this to be true in my own life. Certain energies of people and situations have repeated off and on throughout my life. It is easy to get frustrated and look around for reasons and blame. Some cycles that I pointed a people, situations, things, events, etc. or excuses, than to look within and admit I may play a part in the proverbial “it”.

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While talking to someone about my “bad luck” or cycles, they asked me to take my hand and point at something. After giving them a puzzled look, as if they were from Mars, I took my hand and obliged. I gave them a “Yeah, now what?” look and was asked to look at my hand - really look at it. So I did: • • •

me towards something else. were pointing back at me My thumb was pointing up. (Sometimes my thumb rests on or

“So? What’s the point?” The point is to see the real proverbial “why/how/ who” by opening up one’s thoughts and perceptions. Now take your hand and “point out” your perceived reason for a ahead, I’ll wait..... So now that you are pointing at He/She/They/It/ If only, etc... Now take a look at your hand... I mean truly look at it. When looking at our pointing hand with a new and open perspective, we just the healing can begin.

the perceived reason for the cycle/ problem. This actually is a form of acknowledgment that there is an issue instinct is to blame something/someone outside our self. ends up pointing back at our self. There is no doubt as to why this, the longest acknowledgement that we, ourselves, have something to do with the present situation. Our actions (or lack of actions) and feelings; guilt, pain, frustrations, etc., all play a part in the repetitive cycle. the self. It is the “marrying” (if you will) of the self with the situation. We need to look to see what our involvement, motivation, issues, etc., is with the situation. Find the parallels with our actions, lack of action, feelings and see the relationships and connections to the recurring situations. There are lessons we are to learn as we own our part and put things in perspective. smallest, is on the bottom.

It symbolizes a foundation to allow for healing. Most healing comes with changing ourselves and our actions/lack of actions. It illustrates our forgiveness for what is outside the self, and most of all, for that what is inside the self. because of its size, but it is strong, stabilizing, and makes gripping things easier. Change and forgiveness of self, and others, takes time, awareness and strength. It often starts with small steps. 5. Then there is the thumb. The thumb is the most mobile and free digit of the hand. It is solid and strong and allows the hand to have strength, stability and even gentleness when it’s being used. In our either facing upward or crossing over or wrapped around the acknowledgment of the involvement of our self. Either way the solution, lessons and answers are found. We need to look up, out, and/or and let go of the negative emotions to allow them to be healed and changed.

Once we’ve gone through the process of: • Pointing out a problem/issue • Acknowledging that we have something to do with the present situation • Realizing how we have married our self to the cycle/situation • Using the foundation of forgiveness of what is outside the self and most of all for what is within our self • Looking to the Source for solutions, lessons and answers, we truly can begin to heal and change the repetitive cycles within our lives. Now, when you struggle and feel stuck in a cycle, try to remember the lessons from a pointing hand.

Summer 2018

Wheel Of Life Magazine

Defining Purpose By Sudie Crouch

One of the biggest questions we grapple

Is our job title really our purpose?

here and what we are supposed to do: What is our purpose? We sometimes rephrase it as: What are we supposed to be doing during our time here?

Not always! There are a few whose job title or description is what they are called to do – like some doctors, healers,

The question presents quite a quandary and unfortunately, can make us feel like we are living a life that is not quite what it should be. Some people may feel like they are not living up to the potential or doing what they are called to do – it doesn’t mean that they know what they are supposed to be doing, it just means they know there is supposed to be more than what they are currently doing. And then, there are others who seem to fall into their perfect careers easily and work in what they enjoy for most of their life.

roles. But for many, our job title is not our purpose. There are people working in positions that have nothing to do with their purpose. I caution clients to not get hung up on how they think or believe their purpose is supposed to look. are supposed to do X, Y, or Z, only to more different than our expectations. And sometimes, our purpose is just not our job. Let me repeat that: Sometimes, our purpose is just not our job.

Summer 2018

We have been led to believe for years that the whole reason we are here is to I am not saying to go out and quit your job – that could be more devastating bills, provide basic daily comfort, etc., even if they are not necessarily feeding our souls.

It can be hard to know what our purpose should be. But here’s a few questions to help you identify what your purpose may be. • • • • •

What do you enjoy doing, that you would do for free if time allowed? What have you always felt drawn towards? What do you do naturally? What are you passionate about? What do others recognize in you that you may not even see in yourself?

A person who is passionate about animals may not necessarily be a veterinarian but may volunteer for an animal rescue. Their purpose may be to love and help animals feel safe and Someone who is a healer may work in a corporate job during the week but then does healing work on the weekends or in the evenings. And often, those who are the one that co-workers and others are drawn to during the work week. Teachers may be living their purpose as they help inspire and educate; likewise, someone who isn’t an educator may teach in other ways, as well. Being a parent is also one life purpose that serves an incredible role because you are helping someone else on their own path, nurturing and encouraging their own path. There are countless ways we can live our purpose. We just need to remember our purpose is not always a job title but often, something that makes us feel joy role we play within an organization but it in no way limits or keeps us from living our purpose. That can be actualized no matter what we are doing job-wise! Sometimes, we are put in a job, just so we can be of service in our own way in that very place. So, trust that no matter where you happen to be, you are living your purpose. By Sudie Crouch

Wheel Of Life Magazine

Loving Yourself Through the Pain By Leah Parsons

When your friend and/or family member calls and has a crisis what do you do? Most of us go directly to their aid regardless of what is happening in our own life. We make arrangements to be there for our friend and/or family member and the crisis suddenly takes priority. We don’t diminish the impact of the crisis. We don’t bargain to see if it can wait. We act! Sadly, when it is our own crisis and emotional health at stake we don’t show up in the same way. Often, we don’t show up at all. Why don’t we value our own struggles and pain? Is it because we are taught to “pull up our boot straps” and “soldier on”? I remember vividly the impact of the death of my Dad in 2005. The pain of that loss hit me so hard. It literally felt like someone kicked me in the stomach. I was devastated! I took one week off work and then dove right back into my busy, busy life of working full-time and raising my girls. I was in immense pain but I didn’t allow that pain the space it deserved. I only allowed spurts of emotion to erupt. I quickly pushed the pain away as it felt like an annoyance.

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My Dad and I were very close. He was a solid supporter my entire life, no matter how many without him was something I just couldn’t face. My entire life, I showed what I perceived as strength and buried my pain, but where does the pain go? It just continues to get shoved down, then It erupts. I often felt the intense sting, perhaps for a moment or even an hour occasionally, then I told it to go away. I didn’t give my pain the space it deserved. This was my pattern for months which turned into years when processing my Dad’s death. In actuality this was my pattern for dealing with all types of emotional pain. Hiding the real really a socially acceptable topic of conversation in most circles.

Photos courtesy of Leah Parsons

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The next big loss rocked me to my core and my coping mechanisms completely let go. That’s when the real work of learning how to grieve began. My seventeen year old daughter died by suicide in April 2013. My entire world crumbled around me as if I was watching someone else’s nightmare because it could not possibly be happening to me. I vividly recall my own suicidal thoughts that began swirling around in my mind during that time. I wanted to quit being a Mom because I just couldn’t possibly parent any longer. I knew I would not be able to go on without my child in my life. The suicidal dark thoughts kept taking me captive each and every day. Then, one day, Spirit spoke to me as clear as someone standing beside me, “You are right! You are not going to make it through this one!” This voice abruptly grabbed my attention. I was shocked, yet curious, as to where that voice (that only I could hear) came from. The voice continued: “You are not going to make it unless you step back on your Spiritual path!”

I had lost my spiritual path years before this happened and now Spirit was asking for me to embrace it once again. such a question after taking my child away!” but then I quickly realized that I had to hold onto something or I would slip away. Being knocked down to my knees left me completely vulnerable. However, looking back, that was the moment in time when the glimmer of hope arrived. There was a window of allowed me to become a different version of my former self. The emotional walls came down! I knew that door of opportunity was closing and it would not be pretty if it closed completely. Before new walls began to form, I let go of everything I thought I knew about pain and embraced the unknown. In that moment I chose Love over Hate. I agreed to step back on my spiritual journey not really knowing what that looked like. I asked the spirit world to help me. I was broken and desperate.

immediate and that voice stated, “You have to find a way to be kind to yourself every single day from now on. You have to show up with love in your heart for YOU starting now!” I had to continually interrupt my thought patterns over and over and ask myself, “Leah, is that thought kind?” Being kind and loving myself through the pain, being present to feel ALL of it was a new way of dealing with pain for me. It was hard, hard work and it still is. When a child dies by suicide, the guilt starts to wear you down, so I made a deal with guilt. I allowed the guilt to arrive because I was being present for ALL of the emotions. However, I was determined that guilt was not permitted to take up residence in my body. Visits were permitted but it had to leave. And so my journey of grief began. Next phase was the yoga path....to be continued. By Leah Parsons www.rehtaehparsons.ca

Summer 2018

Reasons To Stay Alive A Review

by Carolyn Laurie those monstrous things inside of me felt. Being busy and ignoring it had become my coping mechanisms. And then something traumatic happened in my life that made everything come to the forefront. It got worse and I was literally making life or death decisions.

I am one of those people who believes should be kept in pristine condition. No folding of the corners, highlighting, marking in pen, or breaking the spine. The last time I marked in a book was when I was in college, some thirty-four years ago. I have now marked in a book Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig, is that book. This book is now my bible on staying alive as a depressed and anxiety ridden human. I have marked it, folded pages – oh the horrors! However, I know I will be coming back to these pages, quotes, and words for the rest of my life. In the last year, I came to realize that I have had depression and anxiety for many years but never put a name on it. I made excuses to myself (and others) as to how I felt and how I was. “Oh, I have Seasonal Affective Disorder”, “I get nervous”, “Something bad/sad happened”. All the excuses. Except that it has been more and more often. It has been a heavy cold damp blanket pressing on me for years, and I’ve never been able to come out and explain how

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And then I read this book. Every single word is valuable to me and will be to others. Even as I write this review, I’m having a hard time singling out what to tell you about it. Matt Haig is brutally honest about his experience and journey with depression and anxiety. He opens by telling us of the time he was going to walk off a cliff. Literally. You instantly, feel how he felt. It’s like you are on that cliff with him. And you know you have either been there or have thought about it. His descriptions of how depression/ anxiety feels are spot on. As he writes of his life and story, you relate to every word and want the world to realize what lives inside you. It’s his story but it’s also the story of you. The brilliance of Matt Haig is that he is not depressing to read. While he is writing about the subject, he can be satirical and even witty. He stabs at our society’s lack of understanding with chapter headings such as: Things people say to depressives that they don’t say in other life-threatening situations, Boys don’t cry, and Things that have happened to me that have generated more sympathy than depression.

Now, listen. If you have ever believed a depressive wants to be happy, you are wrong. They could not care less about the luxury of happiness. They just want to feel an absence of pain. To escape a mind on fire, where thoughts blaze and smoke like old possessions lost to arson. To be normal. Or, as normal as impossible, to be empty. And the only way I could be empty was to stop living. One minus one is zero. ~Matt Haig

He laughs at himself and the ridiculousness of depression and anxiety. I don’t mean laughs in a mocking way. Or maybe I do. He writes about that strange feeling of “derealization”, the weird sensation that makes you feel disconnected, as if you are operating outside your body. He takes you on a journey of his own experiences and with every word, you think “Yes!” or “That’s me”. He makes you feel less alone. And you cry. But you also laugh. Lest you think this book is only about feelings and has no meat to it, here are some of the things he tackles in this book: He quotes some very alarming statistics for mental health in our society today. For example, one in in their life time. The risk of developing depression is apparently 40 percent if a biological parent has been diagnosed. He speaks quite candidly of the differences that men and experience and how society puts pressure on each sex.

No judgement is given. Haig talks about options, pharmaceuticals, and whether or not to take them. Let’s face it, the brain is still much of a mystery. Mr. Haig speaks to some of the theories that abound about how depression starts, where it comes from and how to “cure” it. I mean this in the best of ways. The author helps us to realize how normal and prevalent these conditions are. You are not alone. He lists many, many famous people from all walks of life that have been affected. He tells the story of Abraham Lincoln and his struggle. “The key thing to note is that the president always suffered with depression. He never fully and achieved great things.” Living with depression and/or anxiety is not easy and it’s very hard to admit having it and dealing with it, because you don’t want to seem like less of a person to your family, your friends, and your co workers. Coping is hard.

Summer 2018

Living with depression and/or anxiety is not easy and it’s very hard to admit having it and dealing with it, because you don’t want to seem like less of a person to your family, your friends and your co workers. Coping is hard. “I’m an intelligent human being. Why can’t I get this under control?” By reading this book, Matt Haig gives us the permission to be human. He allows us to wallow if we want and feel…but he also give us tools, weapons, and resources to help us get on with life and living. Throughout the book, Matt has a running discourse with himself where his THEN ME and his NOW ME talk to each other. It’s very engaging to the reader. He breaks up the book in brief chapters with really quirky titles that grab your attention. Best of all, Reasons to Stay Alive gives me hope and I know it will for you. The very last chapter of this book is entitled, Things I have enjoyed since the time I thought I would never enjoy anything again. It’s simply a two-page list of exactly what the title says. (You mean I will once again eventually enjoy taking Charlie for a walk, birds, eating, the occasional glass of wine, trees, talking to strangers, and all the other things that are just chores?). The second last chapter is entitled, How to live (forty pieces of advice I feel to be helpful but which I don’t always follow.) Again, witty, tongue in cheek, sometimes serious. There is so much more that I want to tell you about Reasons to Stay Alive, but most importantly, I want to tell you to just “Run! Run and get this book! Now!”

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OC Publishing, founded by award-winning author, Anne Louise O’Connell, is ready to help you finish your work in progress. Whatever assistance you need, we will create a book development program just right for your personal author journey. Developmental book editing Author mentoring/writing coaching Author profile development Social media set-up assistance Self-publishing guidance Partner publishing Book promotion assistance

www.ocpublishing.ca www.facebook.com/ocpublishing www.twitter.com/annethewriter anne@ocpublishing.ca And even if you don’t have depression or anxiety, this book will help you understand and support your partner, friend, co-worker. Ok, you know what to By Carolyn Laurie www.facebook.com/booksbecause

Are you ready to change your life? Go beyond with The Self Beyond.

I Am, I Can, I Will A Jungle Dream By Nina Pauline Ploetz

universalhiddeninsight.weebly.com

A weekend of connection and meaningful conversations/activities. Embracing all that we experience as we walk through our experiences of grief regardless of where you find yourself on the path. Author: Ninaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Life Lights NinasLifeLights @ gmail.com illustrator: S.D. Lawrence Saddleback studios lawrence @ sddlebackstudios.com

The three types of grief we will be hosting this year will be Child Loss, Spousal Loss and Parental Loss.

For registration and inquiries, please send an email to Info@rehtaehparsons.ca

Order your copy online at BARNES&NOBLE and AMAZON E-book is also available

Join us on Facebook @ The Grief Retreat September 28-30, 2018

Summer 2018

Are We Living in a Virtual Reality? An Interview with Tom Campbell Many of us ask “Who Am I?” and “Why are we here?” When I began asking these questions, I turned to religion. Any answers it offered required a huge leap of faith – farther than I could jump in fact. For something more logical, I turned to science but the answers they gave me were unsatisfactory. I was left to conclude that no one had the answers, that is, until I discovered Tom Campbell and his Theory of Everything. quantum mechanics and metaphysics. Tom is one of those special and rare individuals who dare to remain open to the unexplained and explore the new frontier where science and consciousness meet. The Wheel Of Life Magazine is thrilled to have the opportunity to share this interview with

What is the nature of reality? It’s a computed reality, just like the Sims or World of Warcraft is computed. These are all virtual reality games and all virtual reality works in a similar way. A virtual reality cannot compute itself. That means the computer cannot be inside the virtual reality. The elf in world of Warcraft will not look under a rock his reality. So, the computer has to be in some other reality frame that isn’t in the same reality system and the same goes for the elf’s consciousness. We call the elf’s consciousness the player, the person playing the game makes all the decisions for the elf. That means that the consciousness also has to be non-physical and in another reality frame from the elf. Consciousness is in a conversation with the computer, the same as if you’re the player, who is playing World of Warcraft, you’re in a conversation with the computer and exchanging data with the computer. That’s the way our reality works. Our bodies are avatars, we have conscious, but that consciousness exists in a non-physical reality frame to us. The computer is in a non-physical reality frame to us. Consciousness and the computer have to be in the same reality frame because they’re constantly exchanging data and you can’t do that

unless you’re in the same reality frame. So that is how I end up with a virtual reality. I studied consciousness a long time and found out that consciousness was fundamental, and the physical reality was not. The only thing that made sense was that the physical is information based, which means computed, which means virtual. The difference is, World of Warcraft is a coded reality, so every tree had to be put there by a programmer. Our virtual reality evolved – it started with initial conditions and a ruleset, then a run button was hit and it just evolved to be what we have today. Evolution is what I call the big digital bang, somebody pushed a run button and that was the bang. So, you had initial conditions, which was a very high temperature and a high pressure tiny ball of plasma. Then, when you hit the run button, the rule set determined what happened. The rule set was such that it expanded, it cooled, it made suns, it made planets, it made galaxies and here we are. We’re part of the evolution of that simulation. Though that seems kind of strange, we do have virtual realities being run at universities that were made the same way. They started with a rule set and hit the run button and they evolve. They’re not as complicated as ours but they’re basically the same. Summer 2018

Do you have any theory as to the true nature of consciousness? Consciousness is an information system. What we are conscious of is just information; data that we get through our senses that creates a reality. I have some conjecture about how it started but because we’re consciousness, we can’t get outside of consciousness to see of Warcraft can’t know the true nature of the player because they’re outside of operating room to see how you were born because you weren’t born yet. So, anything that we can say about it, is conjecture. I like to admit my ignorance and say I just don’t know. You need to learn to live gracefully with uncertainty. Can you explain your view of the virtual reality system and consciousness? I’ve come up with several metaphors about conscious, but I caution you that they are metaphors. My theory is a logical theory and in order to talk about it, we have to give things names and functions. So, the fact that I talk about the larger consciousness system as an information system, that’s a metaphor. Then I talk about the individuated unit of consciousness (IUOC) – that is a piece of the larger consciousness system. The IUOC partitions of a piece of itself that then logs on to the avatar to play a human in this virtual reality – that’s the free will awareness unit (FWAU). The IUOC has the logical function of accumulating all the experience because our purpose here is to grow up and become love, because that’s how you optimize low entropy or higher evolved consciousness. So, you and I

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are individuated Unit’s of Consciousness or FWAU’s and so we are the accumulation function. You have to have many life experiences in order to learn, grow up and become love, it’s not an easy thing to learn. So, you must have more than one experience packet, what other people might call incarnations. I tried to avoid many of these terms that other people use that have emotional baggage so that people could look at these ideas without prejudice. Learning is cumulative – and because learning is necessary to evolve consciousness, you have to have more than one experience packet. So, the larger consciousness system could be a metaphor for “higher self”

Is our purpose here to help the system evolve by learning? Consciousness is a social system. The IUOC all have free will, so it is a system of individuals with free will. It had to a system with free will, is through caring, kindness, love and cooperation. That enables the maximum ways to organize. The opposite of that is fear. Instead of moving toward love, if we move toward fear we are de-evolving. Fear is a high entropy thing. With fear there is no trust, without trust you can’t build social structures.

and we are pieces of the IUOC or FWAU. Each of our experience packets might be called incarnations. So, the higher self is the cumulative function, it takes all the data from the different lifetimes and sees what it can learn from it and what it needs to do next. The larger consciousness system is kind of godlike not supernatural. It is a natural system, and in order for it to survive, it has to lower entropy. Entropy is a measure of disorder; lower entropy, or more order, is more information. It began with chaos and that doesn’t contain any information, but if you order some of the random bits, now you have information. That’s how an information system evolves to create organization or information or

What happens in a fear-based organization is that, because there’s fear that individuals will take what you have, individuals tend to band together into little self protection groups as it makes it tougher to take things from them. Pretty soon those groups are warring with each other, so they can get each others stuff because it’s about what you can take and what you can keep. When that get’s stable you end up with 5% of the individuals owning 95% of the resources. That creates hierarchy and at the bottom you have the peasants; that sounds like where we live – a fear-based reality. That is very sub-optimal as far as creating optimal meaning – the optimal situation is through love, caring and co-operation. That will optimize the resources that are available, where as the fear side is very unstable. As groups grow up and get more powerful they tend to come apart – it always ends up self-destructing. That’s why a consciousness information system that is trying to evolve the quality of it’s consciousness, that is, lower it’s entropy - gets more information that is

Summer 2018

when the IUOC learns to care, become love, co-operate, think about how all of us can do this together. Why would something create a virtual Consciousness trades information, it’s an information system, so what IUOC’s do, is to communicate with each other. However, if there are no consequences, it is like 100,000 people in a chat room with no rules. It is hard to grow up under those conditions, it really doesn’t matter what you say or do because there are no consequences. It was hard to grow up and become love where there were few consequences, so, this virtual reality was made where there was a much tighter rule set. There were a lot more rules that you had to abide by. It’s the rules that make the game – the more rules

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you have, the more complex the game is. The more complex the game is, the more strategy you must have. So, we have a rule set and IUOC’s can log on and make choices that are meaningful, choices that have consequences that you can learn from, moral choices, caring choices or fear choices and domination choices, and they learn from the result of that. The nice thing about that is, if you understand that this is the game and you start to work at it, your life gets to be very happy and nice. You enjoy things and things start to work out for you. Synchronicities happen to help you get to where you want to go, because you’re trying to act the way the system is set up for you to learn and grow. how much money you have - you’re still going to be unhappy. So, it boils down to not only telling us why we’re here, but what we can do to make our life fun, happy and productive – we just have to get about the process of lowering our entropy and evolving the quality of our consciousness.

What happens when you try to pursue the path of love and life still isn’t a decent person but you’re still not happy?

helpful, you want to be a part of the solution not part of the problem but as long as it’s coming mostly from your intellect, it’s not going to make you happy. Once you just are it, you will get happy, even in a world that’s as mean and tough as our world is. Those things that make you unhappy just aren’t important any more because what you do is help people, you serve, you’re positive, cooperative.

You’ll often see people who are trying to live a spiritual path and it doesn’t seem like they’re growing, it’s just not working for them, they’re still unhappy, they’re still struggling, yet they’ve been trying to walk the talk. The problem is that they are “when you actually working at the intellectual level. They are doing grow up, it’s not things because they think they should, because it about doing the makes sense – that’s doing right thing, it’s it at the intellectual level.

about

So, you say “Being kind the right sounds like a good thing”, so you try to be kind. You see an old lady walking across the street and you want to be kind, so you go help. All of that is intellectual, you’re acting, you’re doing things you think you should do because they sound like good ideas. The difference is, you need to be kind, not just act kind. Most people on a spiritual journey use their minds to decide what’s the right thing to do and why it’s the right thing to do, but when you change yourself, when you grow up, it’s not about doing the right thing, it’s about being the right person. When you see the old lady you don’t think “I should go help her because I’m a nice person”. You don’t think about it at all, there is no analysis needed, you just see her and go help. It’s just part of who you are, not who you think you aught to acting is done with all the right reasons. You want to be kind, you want to be

How do you BE kind, rather than just ACT kind?

Being requires a change in you, you get rid of the fear. That doesn’t mean you learn to supress being the fear and learn to act person.” better. When you get upset about something, for instance, someone says something negative about you and you get upset about that, that’s fear. There is a fear in there of being inadequate, or not being liked or something that creates that anger. I’m not talking about grit your teeth and smile and don’t get angry. I’m not even talking about don’t grit your teeth, just smile and don’t get angry, all that’s acting better – that doesn’t help you grow up. It has to be real, so that when that person says that nasty thing in front of people you know, you don’t get upset about it, it just doesn’t matter. You might even go up to them and ask them, “How did you end up with that opinion?” or you might even pat them on the back and say “You look like you’re upset” and give them a hug. So, you deal with it in a positive way instead of getting angry and dealing with it in a negative way. The thing isn’t

Summer 2018

to suppress the fear and act nice, it’s to get rid of the fear and BE nice. So that you don’t have buttons anymore, and you can accept it. It’s not about you, it’s about the world and other people. You try to be a part of everyone’s solution and you are happy because there’s nothing that makes you unhappy – you just accept things the way they are. early lives and they’ve been conditioned to feel fear through abuse or neglect, etc, how do they release the fears? Releasing fear is a lot harder to do than it is to say. There are a couple of ways that I can suggest that you go about it. One is that most people are not even aware of their fears. They are up to their eyebrows in fear and most of their choices are made from fear, but they have no idea what these fears are. Beliefs are also hard to see, because we see them as facts, they are just true – that’s the nature of beliefs. The one thing you can see is ego.

Ego is any negative feeling you have. If you feel angry, upset, annoyed, stressed, things, that’s ego. The ego is a product of fear. If you didn’t have fear, you wouldn’t have ego or many beliefs. If you feel upset, somebody said something rude to you and it upsets you, if you look at why you’re upset, if you take responsibility for being upset, you don’t say “I’m upset You recognize that you’re upset because you chose to be upset. You say, “Okay some fear made me angry as a reaction A lot of the fears we have come from not being lovable, or appreciated, triggered it. When you get rid of that and it doesn’t matter. You can deal with it instead of throwing gasoline on that coming from ego. So that’s how you negative emotion.

To release the fear, you must have a real intent at the being level, not just at the intellectual level. You must really want to get rid of it at the being level and when you do, it will go away just from that intent. When you keep that intent present in your mind, what happens is you’ll catch yourself getting angry and you say “Oh, I don’t want to be like that” and you will back away from it. Now that may be your intellect coming in and making you ACT nicer, but, that still reinforces your intent to BE nicer and as that happens over and over the fear will just go away. that effects you, then you just have to let it go and not do it. The intent will make you do all the right things to let go. It takes a long time, but you just have to keep working at it. That’s why we have so many experience packets (incarnations) because it’s not easy and it takes a long time. 38

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Would sadness be ego as well? It can be. Sadness can be self pity and that’s nothing but ego. On the other hand, you can be nothing but love, you can see that a lot of people that you care about hurt themselves, and it makes you sad. Because it’s so unnecessary. But you have to let people be who they are, you can’t go in and tell people “Okay, I’m going to help you people”, that just makes them feel worse, so you have to let people be on their own path and grow up how ever they do. You can help them though, by giving them an environment in which they feel stronger, they feel empowered to make choices. You can give them that environment, and that usually means you are non-judgemental, they can make any choice they want and you’re not going to get angry about it. If you can give them an environment that makes them feel more secure, then they are more likely to make a better choice. But that’s about all you can do and that’s sad. Love can be sad, but it’s not a downer where you sit around and get all distressed about it because that’s just ego again. Because everyone has to grow up, and that’s just the way it is, you try to be helpful, you try to not create obstacles for people, you try to do the best you can and be so positive, so helpful

You have to look at all life’s choices in terms of long term entropy reduction. What’s going to be the most positive choice in the long term. Your growth comes from engaging with other people and dealing with them with grace and compassion. So that’s the connection between consciousness, the information system, evolution and the reason we are here is to become love. That’s all a logical process. It’s nice because it tells us

Summer 2018

My Bitter-Sweet Surrender By Jeff Pilsner For most of my life I have struggled with whether I wanted to live on this planet or not. I’m not suicidal! However, the rules of the game in this illusion we call earth are simply not set up for someone who doesn’t buy into materialism. The irony to “succeed” in the illusion, but I have never had the heart to take from others to provide for myself. The choices that I made to survive were not simple ones and the stress that I incurred directly was based in the erroneous belief that I had to choose between loving myself and loving others. I had to die twice to learn otherwise. As I write this, I am coming up on the On April 23rd, 2015 I underwent openheart surgery. Looking at the experience through the eyes of the machine mind, it was simply a plumbing job, but through the eyes of spirit it was a death and rebirth. During the procedure my heart did not pump for several hours. Coming out of the anesthetic in intensive care and scoping out the multitude of hoses and medical devices surrounding me, I wasn’t so sure I wanted to come back and deal with what I suspected was in store. It turned out that I had the choice - I was bleeding internally and if I was going to live, it was necessary for the cardiac team to open me up again – thus the second death. The message was clear - it was up to me to actively, once and for all, choose

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life! There was so much left for me to was my soulmate Ana, family members, and critters that I simply could not leave behind. As I was wheeled once again into the bowels of the operating theater, it was as if I was being catapulted through a tunnel of light. In that moment, that precious moment, a feeling of absolute

and utter surrender enveloped me. I was clear on what I wanted, but I also knew that it was now out of my hands. So, with Creedence Clearwater Revival’s, “As Long as I Can See the Light” blaring through the enormous speakers in the operating room – I gazed into the surgeon’s troubled eyes. In the sweet spirit of absolute surrender, I let him know that I was embracing and accepting whatever the outcome would be.

As a breathing mask descended onto my face I looked him straight in the eye and whispered what I knew could be my last words, “I am not ready to go – so please do your best!” I will never forget the way he looked at me in that moment. We connected soul to soul. I knew what I was committing to when I uttered these words, or at least I thought I did. I survived the procedure (as evidenced by my now writing this article) but I must say that the last approx. 1100 days have not been easy. I have always been a quick healer, but this experience has proven to me just how fragile, in all aspects, a human being can be. Without going that after laying on an operating table for over 14 hours – I experienced some complications. I lost a lot of blood, so my hemoglobin levels took many months to bounce back. This greatly impacted my overall energy level. I had to learn how to breathe all over again because my lungs had been collapsed for an abnormally long time and stayed ‘velcroed’ together. For several months afterward, it would take half an hour to walk 100 meters; and then there was the excruciating body pain because of such an invasive procedure. With every step, every breath that I wheezed into my lungs, I had to continue to actively follow through on the promise that I had made that fateful day. The physical challenges that I endured in all of this were inconsequential in comparison to the emotional and spiritual challenges. Regrettably, most of my friends and family did not show up or offer any support: no visits, no correspondence, no phone calls.

Summer 2018

For someone who has always endeavored to ‘lay down his life’ for others, this was a bitter pill to swallow... for it felt that in my time of need, I was forgotten! Ever since I was a young boy, I have always been an intensely spiritual person. I have enjoyed truly overthe-top cosmic experiences, and it was through these experiences that I developed an unshaking belief in spirit. I could always feel it, especially in the heart chakra! However, maybe due to the heart-medications, maybe the copious amounts of anesthetic from the surgeries, or maybe the fact that my heart had stopped beating for those many hours (the heart is the energetic center of the body), it felt like I totally lost that sense of connection. It was one thing to be abandoned by loved ones, but it was purgatorial to no longer feel like I could connect to the divine! I felt gutted in every possible way, emotionally and spiritually “disillusioned”! What got me through this dark time was becoming acutely aware of my own energy levels and what me and the things that didn’t. I had to actively choose how to spend my precious resources. The challenge for me was facing the truth of my life: that the work I had done, the relationships that I thought I my imagination. I realized that I hadn’t been living for myself, but for others, and they hadn’t even wanted me to. Which brings me to what I stated at the my needs for the sake of others.

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I felt that I was being more spiritual, more righteous in my willingness to serve but ask for nothing in return. The lesson that I’ve learned in this process, is that the only relationship of true importance is the relationship that I have with myself. By ensuring that my own needs are met, by practicing “highest self-love” - loving others as I already love myself, I am practicing the truest and greatest love of all. This is what brought me through my deaths and this is now what brings me through my life, one step... one blessed breath at a time. As I write this - I am elated to share that the feeling of fullness is returning, and I’m experiencing an even more glorious connection with the divine! It’s been a long time coming, and I am realizing more each day – that this whole experience was a necessary part of my personal journey. However, in the future, I must state for the record that I’d like to manifest teaching situations for myself that are less bitter and a whole lot more... sweet! By Jeff Pilsner http://shifthappensnow.ca

A Journey Around the World and Into Trans Photo courtesy of Mark Setjo

When I was little, I read quite a lot. For one thing, it was the best way to learn a foreign language. Whether it was books or articles in magazines and newspapers, I became familiar with the vocabulary and grammar of the language in which it was written. By the time I entered Kindergarten, I spoke Bahasa (aka Indonesian) and English. When I graduated high school, I was Paul Sartre’s “Les yeux sont faits” and “Le petit prince” by Antoine de SaintExupéry. In the years after graduation, I didn’t speak as much French as before, by whenever I’m in France, although many locals I meet have no problems switching to English. Having said that, I’d like to add that Quebecois is an entirely different kind of French. I struggle with that.

By Mark Setjo

Another thing with reading, it took me to places I wasn’t able to get to physically, whether it’s Narnia, Hogwarts, or hanging or V.I. Warshawski, for example. They all are great escapes. I also loved magazines with photographs of faraway places and I still do. I would look at them and wonder what life was like over there. I’d wonder about the people, the animals, the food. Yes; even at a young age I was aware of the different cuisines in different countries. My favourite food is nasi goreng (fried rice). It’s my comfort food, and if I had to pick one dish to eat the rest of my life nasi goreng would be it. And speaking of food: despite food allergies I try to eat as many foreign dishes as I can. Who doesn’t listen to music while traveling? It helps to kill time and adds

Summer 2018

colour to landscapes. Music, like smell, enables us to time travel. Awolnation’s “Sail” takes me back to the time I caught waves at Lawrencetown Beach, Nova Scotia with East Coast Surf. Or whenever I hear “Love song” by The Cure, it

relatives that live there. It is somehow so ingrained in my DNA that no matter where I am, the moment I catch a whiff

spending time with my favourite uncle and his family.

the plane. For the record, I don’t smoke nor does the majority of my relatives in Indonesia.

Some people have a sense of wanderlust, others don’t and are happy to stay where they are and not venture out. Summer vacation is around the proverbial corner, and for those with resources, that means they get to travel. Road trips, train rides, to try new foods and get familiar with different smells, meet new people and recharge. Speaking of smells, whenever I smell clove cigarettes, it immediately transports me back to Indonesia and my relatives that live there. It is somehow so ingrained in my DNA that no matter where I am, the moment I catch a whiff I

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came from. Anyone who’s been to the country would recognize it as it’s one

While I’m very aware of my carbon footprint and the fact that traveling by plane isn’t environmentally friendly, without that option, I wouldn’t be able to visit my relatives in Indonesia or my friends who live scattered across Canada. At least not without having to quit my job every time I want to travel for longer than a week or two. With almost every trip, new destinations are added to my list. I’m not the kind of person that visits the same place every year, but if I revisit a place I always try and visit another area I haven’t been to before. Having friends me: it gives me the option to see and do less touristy things.

Friends have been important in my journey, not just in traveling but also in my journey to become my authentic self. A sailing friend from Victoria, British Columbia, was one of the people who suggested I try a different approach in my boundaries of androgyny. After the 90s were over, I used “genderqueer” to describe myself, as I thought it was a were initially met with

resistance, but eventually my curiosity won and I began experimenting beyond binding. Binding is using frog bras and compression shirts in order to make for over two decades. Before I started HRT (hormone replacement therapy; periodical testosterone shots in my case) I had to come out as trans to those around me. I had already come out to my brother and close friends; they were all on board with me and fully supportive. About a out to coworkers. I decided to go with the personal approach and, to my

surprise, everybody respected it. I haven’t been back to Indonesia since my grandfather passed away. I’d love to go back, however he was my main motivation for doing so and now he’s gone. Initially, the fact that I would be seeing my relatives as version 2.0 was a little daunting, I had no idea how they would respond to my physical transition. Thanks to the internet and social media (read: Facebook), it’s easier to keep

in touch and a few of my relatives do know. I don’t know whether they fully understand but they want me to be Even though we’re not close, I couldn’t be more relieved. I don’t need their approval, but it’s nice to know they respect my decision. I grew up putting transitioning, I had to learn to put myself getting better at it. Although half of my physical travels are done solo, I do enjoy company. On this journey I’m glad I have company. Cheers, Mark Setjo

Summer 2018

The Window In The Black Box By Leann Crook

“Leann is a pleasant girl, we really enjoy her in class, but I’m afraid I don’t think she will make it in regular high school. I would suggest alternatives for her to succeed.”

desk of my junior high counsellor, my parents were appalled. They stood up and said, “Leann will go to regular high school with all her friends and she will pass. You wait and see”. Promptly they turned on their heels, grabbed my hand and pulled me out of that dingy room. “We didn’t believe that crap. Don’t listen to a word of it”, my Mom announced, and my Dad grinned. “You are smart, you are capable, and you will make something of yourself.” There were no more discussions of ‘alternatives’. I did get through high school and completed college; however, the following years became grim. At 23 years of age, my husband left me with three babies. The following years brought the

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struggles of divorce, the welfare system, losing my house and car, getting sued, losing a business, getting robbed, being heartbroken, and then having my ex take my children from me. I was emotionally stressed. I was mentally and at times didn’t know if I would make it through the day. At times, it was an hourly struggle. For ten years I felt destroyed. As the song says, nothing’s going to Break my Stride (Matthew Wilder 1983). Nothing was going to stop me and nothing was going to hold me down. With a positive attitude and an undying desperation to achieve success, I was going to do it. At that time, you could walk into my house and discover positive

‘Leann’s Dynamic W Photo copyright

and walls. If you opened the closet door car of my dreams. If you turned on the tape machine you would hear positive motivating speakers telling me, “I have the power”. I understood the most important asset I had was me. Nobody was going to destroy me, nobody was going to hurt me to the point I could not come back. A very special friend at that time was there for me and later we would marry. Setting intentions, focusing on my goals and working the plan was the key.

I dreamt of travelling and working internationally, and ten years after going to university, I am now working in Iraq with a great company. The vision of living in a beautiful home with views overlooking ‘a dynamic wall of nature’-I now have. The children I worked so hard to provide a good life for, are now happy, healthy, and multiplying in their own little families. What I set my mind to, I achieved, again.

Slowly, light came into my life. The window in the dark box I was in began to open. First one thing would become easier and then another. It took time. around me. I had a safe home, a reliable car, my children were happily in my life, I was attending university, I had a beautiful man to share my life with, and I was healthy and strong. My hope and faith were completely unwavering over the years. When I looked at what I came through, it occurred to me…more is possible. A new set of goals needed to be set, I refocused and began to work the plan.

Wall Of Nature View’ t Marc Geuzinge

Summer 2018

Now for a huge, scary goal which I have had in my heart for 25 years; becoming a Writer and Dynamic Public Speaker is my new goal. Though it exhilarates me, it also scares the $&*% out of me. The weight on my shoulders begs the question, “Am I ready for the next push?” All I must do, is break it down to small steps and take one step at a time. Have trust in the goal and the endurance to do the work, while accepting the time it will take to achieve it. Writing one article at a time is how it will start. This is achievable. I’m a long way from being on a Best Seller List or entertaining crowds with energetic stories, but I know if I maintain my focus and do work using bite-sized pieces, it is achievable.

I giggle at the thought of comparing my pay cheques with that counsellor from junior high school. He was unaware of what I was capable of. My parents taught me not to listen to others and listen to my own heart. By drawing on my strengths and leaning on my support systems, I made it past high school and on to wonderful life experiences. If you are reading this article then, it appears, I AM A Writer. Someday when you see me on stage, well, on that day, I will be a Dynamic think and do, not by what others think of me. Trust in your dreams. Are you By Leann Crook

Leann and her Mom Photo courtesy of Leann Crook

Three Easy Steps To Give Your Inner Critic the Boot! By Tess Adams What do you call your inner critic? I’ve heard some use the name Negative Nellie, some use Debbie Downer. Maybe your inner critic doesn’t have a name but I know he or she is living in your head! Every one of us has an inner critic. Richard Wilkins calls it the Script. Whatever you call it, it runs automatically until we spot it and then replace the message. We are our own worst critics! We say things to ourselves that we wouldn’t dream of saying to our friends or family or anyone else! We beat ourselves up over mistakes, the past, regrets, habits, how we look, … The list goes on and on. What does that do for us? Nothing good. It may keep us safe from failing at something, but then we are not learning and growing. We are wrapped up in fear to step out and try something new. We are holding ourselves back. Not only are we holding ourselves back, feel like we have to hide who we really are.

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How different would our inner and outer worlds would look and feel if we fired our inner critics?! I’ve identified three steps that will help us do just that. Step One: “We need to talk.” Don’t we hate to hear that? It usually means someone is breaking up with us. In this case, it is the exact opposite. Look yourself in the mirror and say, “We need to talk.” Think of your inner child when you say it. See her (substitute she for he when it fits) in your eyes. She’s in there. Tell her you love her. Tell her she’s safe. Tell her you can handle whatever comes up (because you CAN.) Tell her she’s fabulous, she’s unique, she’s perfect. She is all those things! Give yourself all the nurturing messages you can think of. EVERY DAY! What would you like to hear from someone you absolutely trust and admire? Then say it to yourself! You are a light in the dark, but when we berate ourselves, our spark dies just a little. Let’s fan the flames and get sparkling! Step Two: “ Intentional Gratitude” When is the last time you said thank you to yourself? Have you ever? Most of us have never ever said thank you to ourselves. Do a scan right now for something you can be grateful for. How about saying thank you to your feet for carrying you around all day? What about being grateful to your heart for beating without being told? How about to your brain for helping you make decisions? What can you thank yourself for? Intentionally look for things to feel grateful for. We spend far too much time griping and complaining. If we pivot from the griping to gratitude, we are nurturing ourselves right away. Our vibration raises, and we begin to look at things differently. 50

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As part of this step, get out your journal or some writing paper and take a few moments to answer these questions. They will help you develop a new appreciation for YOU. I encourage you to stay present and stay in the positive as you go through these. Let this feel like a big pat on the back. Please resist the temptation to go into regret. Focus on the positive, and go with what comes up first. 1.) Where in my life do I feel fulfilled? 2.) Where am I making myself a priority in my life? 3.) Where am I growing? 4.) Where am I taking care of my health? 5.) How am I showing love to those in my life? 6.) Where am I honest with myself? 7.) What changes am I making in my life? 8.) Where are my boundaries? 9.) How much of my past have I let go of? 10.) How much gratitude do I live with?

Step Three: Write a Dismissal Letter. As the loving being who decides what critic through a dismissal letter. Tell her ho! I promise you it feels fabulous! You may even decide to frame this to remind yourself that you aren’t rehiring her. Now that we have gone through the three steps, there is one more point I would like to make that has been a huge game changer for me in self-care. After I tried a new class in NIA (a class in movement that combines healing arts, martial arts, and dance), I realized how hard I was being on myself. I realized that I was feeling worse and worse during the class. My movements were getting smaller and smaller. I was trying to hide. I was positioning myself so I could not see myself in the mirror. I was comparing myself to everyone else in the room. I was the biggest person there. My arms were not as long and slender as the others. I was shorter and stumpier than everyone else. My movements were not as graceful. My comparisons were killing my spirit and affecting my every move. In the moment, it wasn’t an easy thing to stop. What really struck me was that the other ladies in the class were thinking just the opposite. They were amazed how well I did considering it was all new to me. Do you compare yourself to anyone else? Do you ever feel not as smart as someone else or as beautiful or as educated or as talented or as loving or as strong or as...?

Today I am focusing on releasing this nasty habit. I’m giving it up. I’m letting it I am changing my self-talk! It may take some time, but I am willing to turn it on it’s head! I am setting an intention right now to create a huge shift in this. I am where I am on my journey. It’s my journey, no one else’s. No one else is me. I will admire the beauty I see in people around me without questioning my own! I will admire all the amazing people I have in my life, AND I will value, cherish, nurture, and be grateful for ME! Are you with me? By Tess Adams https://tessadamscoaching.com

Summer 2018

Getting Out of the Muck By Rachel Hart

Life has a funny way of putting you where you need to be, whether you like it or not. In fact, the experiences are often the fertile grounds on which our greatest joys and accomplishments are grown. None of that was going through my mind as I was being dragged down the hall, naked and screaming, by a husband who had only hours earlier professed to love me. How did I end up here? I was a college graduate. I was pretty. I was enjoyed my vibrant personality. But the girl I once was had vanished because of this marriage, replaced by an isolated and hollow version of myself, too embarrassed to admit to anyone what a huge mistake I had made. Instances like this one continued in frequent intervals, leaving me with little hope for any prospects of a happy future. I was able to rationalize my abusive situation. I told myself that I was responsible for my husbandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s behavior because I had yelled in disagreement or fought back when I should have just acquiesced to his biting, punching, and hair pulling.

Eight months into the relationship, I got pregnant. Looking back, I had no business even for a reason and that there are no accidents in this life, I remain humbled and in awe of the blessings that were born from the worst of circumstances. My sister-in-law was a vital resource and support for my pregnancy and birth. She had given birth to all three of her babies at home with a midwife. This concept was completely foreign to me. I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even know that was an option for women. Everyone I had ever known, including my own mother, had gone to the hospital to have their babies. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just what you did. But something about this alternative way of giving birth to my baby resonated with me with such truth, that I knew home birth would be the way I would do it. 52

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I decided to use the same midwife my sister-in-law used. Every month, I looked forward to my prenatal visits. My midwife would perform routine clinical assessments of me and my baby like checking my blood pressure and listening to the babyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heartbeat. But what I really looked forward to was the part of the visit in which we spent time developing a relationship with each other. We talked about how labor would feel and how important it was that my baby and I were undisturbed as much as possible, so as not to detract at all from the bonding time that happens between mother and child immediately following an unmedicated and intervention-free birth.

another week. I had learned that most But my baby had other plans. I called my midwife and prepared for what I knew would be an experience that would require lots of patience and endurance. My sister-in-law arrived and stayed with me the entire time. Having the encouragement and support from women who knew what I was going through was so helpful. My husband was there and attentive, but as a man, he could only sympathize. Eight hours me earlier that morning, I pushed my daughter out into this world and received her warm, slippery body onto

I was even able to open up a bit about my continuously failing relationship. I was the happiest I had been in a long time and could hardly wait to give birth On the morning of November 28, 2001, I woke up to what felt like strong menstrual cramps, coming and going in be in labor because I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t due for

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my chest. She was wide awake, and as our eyes met one another, my world changed in an instant. I was totally enamored with my baby, of course, but I also had a newfound respect for myself and what my body was capable of. Both a baby and a mother were born that day. Even when a pregnancy and birth have gone perfectly, the immediate postpartum period is an intense time. Still bleeding and now leaking milk from sore, constantly suckled breasts, I spent most of my days alone with my baby and my thoughts. I thought about my birth all the time, and how I had been changed by it. I realized the power and capabilities that I held as a woman, and in my bones, I knew that this birth had transformed me. I developed the mantra, “If I can do that, I can do anything.” That realization is what gave me the courage to admit that I was selling myself short, denying myself of the joy I deserved in this one precious life I had to live. I also refused for this situation to be an example for my daughter of what marriage was supposed to be. Four months after my daughter was born,

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I left my husband. It was not an easy time, but through my birth experience, I found a strength I never knew I possessed, and my mantra continued to carry me through the turbulence that is single motherhood. ‘If I can do that, I can do anything.” as a home birth midwife. I still marvel at the perfectly orchestrated events that facilitated the growth and change that led me to where I am today. My abusive marriage led me to a sisterin-law who had home births. This led me to the midwife who caught three of my four babies, and trained me in midwifery. Now, after twelve years of practice, my passion for helping women realize their innate power through birth only continues to grow. When a woman is properly cared for during her prenatal, birth, and postpartum period, she has the potential to access parts of herself that have been locked up for years because of fear, grief, or abuse. I know because it happened to me, and I continue to see it in the women I serve. By Rachel Hart www.birthingway.com

How I Stopped Being

a Victim

By Ana Bokstrom

I will preface this article with a warning – I’m going to talk about sexual abuse and I’m going to be a bit descriptive, but I want you to know before I start that I made it through – and you can too. I was half of my life. It began when I was about 9 months old and continued throughout my childhood and into adulthood. As a result, I didn’t know that I could set boundaries. Having had them violated from earliest childhood, I just didn’t have the awareness of having the ability to say NO. By the age of 9, I had been raped, gang raped, and beaten. I wanted to

die but didn’t have any concept of how to kill myself. Instead, through a mechanism I don’t understand, but am grateful for, I forgot. I simply blocked out my experiences, made up a pretend childhood, and carried on as if none of it had happened. As a teen, I was raped twice by men which I knew were a threat. I did nothing to protect myself from either of them, because I didn’t think I could. I thought that this pattern of being victimized was one that I was simply unable to avoid. I thought it was just the nature of being a girl/woman in this society.

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At 38 I had left my husband of 15 years. He was an angry man with his own history of being abused. When I married him, I thought he was safe because he was never physically abusive. As the years of our marriage progressed, he became angrier and angrier. When our two sons were 7 and 9, I had an epiphany – if I continued to raise them in a household with an angry father they were doomed to continue the pattern of abuse. I had to leave if they were going to have a chance at a healthy life – so I left… one thing you could say about me by this point was that I was pragmatic. This decision began a new phase of my life. I moved to another city with my sons and began art school – which I loved. I began a new relationship with a man who was kind and supportive, and I rapidly fell in love. I felt like life the memories started to return. At getting a massage and I suddenly appear in my artwork that I hadn’t intended, I was dreaming violence. I kept telling myself that these were just products of my imagination. Then one day my family were visiting and as they were leaving my father grabbed my breast and commented that I wasn’t wearing a bra. I thought nothing of it and neither did my mother or brother. After they left my new boyfriend asked, “WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?”

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He was shocked at what had just happened and when I told him it was nothing, just normal behaviour from my father, his response was, “There was nothing normal about what he just did!” It took me a while to see his point. I had to call some girlfriends and get their opinion, which to my surprise was the same as his. I had to start facing the possibility that I was sexually abused. It took a remarkably long time for me to accept it. I had a childhood I remembered, didn’t I? Over time, and with occasional help from a therapist, I came to terms with the truth. I started recovering from sexual abuse. To my someone who had healed. There were plenty of books written by survivors, but I didn’t want to just survive, I wanted to

Surely someone had broken a trail I could follow!? The best I could do was to pick out bits and pieces of therapies from different sources and lock myself in my room for some alone time. After a year, many boxes of tissues, several journals and lots of drawing, I emerged on shaky legs – afraid to go out with my newfound vulnerability but determined to rejoin the world. I was hyper-sensitive and easily frightened. I now understood why I had blocked my memories. How was I going to live with the knowledge of my vulnerability? Now that I knew I was a victim, how was I going to stop being one? I began going to groups like Incest Anonymous to shared our stories week after week, it only seemed to embed our “victimness” even deeper. I didn’t want to keep telling my story. I was starting to feel like I WAS my story. It was time for me to move into uncharted territory. I realized that what was working for others wasn’t going to work for me. I began exploring ways to understand what happened from a larger perspective. When I have questions that I can’t answer, I write them down and then I just wait for an answer. Often immediately after I’ve written the question, I write the answer… even when I didn’t know that I knew the answer. I have my own theories about where the answers come from but that’s not important. What IS important is when an answer hits me as TRUE deep in my gut.

Summer 2018

These are the answers that I got to my series of questions: Why did this happen to me? “You wanted to learn compassion.” What made my abusers choose violence? “Violence had been done to them, and they were trying to get their power back.” If I believe that I manifest my reality, had I manifested this experience too? “Before you incarnated you knew the likelihood of having these you willingly entered the family unit knowing abuse would likely happen.” If I HAD manifested it, how does an infant manifest sexual abuse? “You (with help) establish a general plan for your life before you incarnate.” Do we only start having free will when we grow up? If so, at what age do we suddenly take over responsibility for our experience? “You always have free will, however your experiences are usually close to the plan when you are an infant and young child and slowly deviate more as you use the power of choice throughout your life.” Had I wanted this experience for a reason? “You incarnated into this family for several reasons: You had some history with some of of that history as you could so that you, and they, could heal and move on. You wanted to forgive them and yourself for past interactions.” Was there something to be learned from the experience? “You wanted to learn compassion for the abused AND the abuser.” Had this made me who I am even though I didn’t consciously remember until I was an adult? “It made you the beautiful compassionate soul that you are.” If so, had some good come from the abuse? “You are the good.” How could I continue to feel like a victim if I believed what I had written was true?

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Suddenly I knew that I had choice. I could continue to attract abuse if I still felt I had something to learn from the experience. There was no judgement either way from the universe. But if I could come to a place of forgiveness, understanding that those who abused me were also abused, I could free us both. If I could accept that I had as much choice as they did in the experience, I would stop feeling helpless to change my experience. They still have free will. They may continue in their pattern, with being a victim... until THEY no longer identify with the role. This allowed me to forgive those who played the abuser role in my lifeâ&#x20AC;Ś and tuck my free will under my arm and RUN with it towards something NEW. By Ana Bokstrom http://shifthappensnow.ca

Intuitive Life Coach Tess Helping you create new beginnings by living from your soul. TessAdamsCoaching.com tessadamscoaching@gmail.com FB/IntuitiveLifeCoachTess

Summer 2018

The Soul of Sustainability By Holli Smith When I was a child I ate junk food, smoked cigarettes, littered, and did pretty much everything we are told not to do if we care about our health or the environment. I thought my body, the air, and our Earth wouldn’t be affected. I thought that no matter what I did, And then I became a mom. The whole ‘I didn’t care about anything until I had someone to care about’ phenomenon that so many parents experience, hit me full force. When my very young daughter started experiencing rashes, digestive issues, and other minor health concerns, I sought help but found little. I was told that she had allergies and would most likely outgrow them, that it was nothing serious.

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Many parents I know have been told the same thing, no testing, no concern, just wait and see. We weren’t even sure what the allergies were from, as there seemed to be no so I keep looking for answers. We saw a naturopath and discovered that both of us suffered from chemical allergies. Chemicals in food, chemicals in cleaner and body care products. Anywhere that chemicals were lurking, there was a potential danger.

I hadn’t been aware of the vast chemical industry, of the contaminations and hidden ingredients, but as I delved deeper into this particular rabbit hole, I felt like my world had been poisoning ourselves at every turn. Poisoning other beings and poisoning the world itself. I had generally trusted that companies, governments and other world organizations were looking out for our best interest. That they were protecting us by screening what was sold by regulating manufacturing processes. What I learned shook my belief in a lot of things, but especially in the systems that rule our society. It became increasingly clear that misinformation and abuse of

trust ran rampant through every industry. And some of the traumatic experience from my own childhood began to make sense. What I found wasn’t the hidden, conspiracy theory type of information that would be considered debatable. In the early 2000s, many people were already awake and aware to what was happening, and everyone had access to this knowledge, if only we had all known to look. Unfortunately, my people were told my family and friends what was being done to our food, our water, and all the other products we used daily, I was treated like I was crazy. I was the one who wasn’t to be trusted. That was the deceit being played upon us, how we had blindly allowed our lives to be directed by others. All the facts were there for anyone who cared to look, but most people didn’t look.

Summer 2018

And it isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t limited to foods and cleaning products but encompasses everything from clothing and furniture to buildings began to rearrange my life, I ended up making my own organic sheets because

The years that followed were ones of intense frustration and fear. I did everything I could to protect my daughter, but it seemed impossible to get away from the toxic materials and sneak her. And yet, I knew in my heart that if we were careful she would heal. And so would I, because I had been experiencing physical ailments as well, and had been for years. But like a lot of people, I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really take notice with my own health until the problems were too big to ignore. We have moved into a time of transparency, and as the details of the devastation come into the mainstream, an increasing number of people are joining the eco/organic movement.

Now you can order them from dozens of places. Everywhere we look, people are committing to going green. And while itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a huge undertaking, it is far worse to stay in this pattern of separation and disregard. To see the heartbreaking destruction and extinctions, to know that babies are being poisoned by industries, and that their siblings and parents are working in deplorable conditions. The pollution in our world causes problems that are not limited to the pollution itself, as awful as that alone is. Everything is connected. And the destruction of the planet impacts every single being living on the planet one way or another. It is an environmental issue, a social issue, a health issue, an economic issue and perhaps most importantly, a spiritual issue.

It is my belief that it is our soul truth to nurture and cherish this amazing home we reside on, and that when people live from a place of peace, from our souls, we do not destroy. We do not pillage and plunder and abuse. We became disconnected somehow and lost our way, but as more and more of us wake up, we are all about change. We are called to correct the When I am questioned about why this is so important to me, why I am so passionate about environmental sustainability and clean, green living, my answer is love. I love this beautiful Earth we are living on and I love the beings that inhabit her. To me there is no greater purpose than that of alignment and harmony, elevating a world culture where everyone can live a life of love, joy and spiritual freedom. The more deeply I connect with my own spirituality, the more deeply I feel this truth. By Holli Smith

Blue Crow Inspirations by Angela Jeffreys

Helping you to discover your lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s path. -Hypnotherapy -Courses on Shamanism and spirituality -Spiritual Counselling & Readings -Shamanic Healing & Intuitive Healing

Become Whole Food Optimized See nutritionist Kelly Aiello, R.H.N. for in-person and online nutritional services.

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Summer 2018

Forgiving My Father By Bernette Sherman Most people in my life may not notice that I don’t speak much about the man to whom I owe a part of my existence. My father has always been a shadow at the periphery of my life. He clings on at the edge of who I am, holding onto a place where I feel shame, remorse, guilt, and resignation. It has been that way for forty years. Forty years is a long time. between “few and far in between” even greater. I have one vivid memory of him holding a double-wide trailer in the low-country of rural South Carolina. I have a few other fragmented snapshots of him during the time he was married to my mother.

Those pieces of him, captured in mental photographs, were valuable keepsakes to a girl who had little more to hold onto. It’s been forty years since that hot summer of 1978, when what little relationship we had was spoiled. It ended as my mother, who was pregnant with Like the rest of us, my father wasn’t perfect. I witnessed his abusive behavior and heard about it on more than one occasion. It was all I could do to be cordial with him. Despite being my father, there was no relating to the man who scared me on one level and I couldn’t understand on another. I didn’t know what to do with, or how to be, with him. I didn’t know him and later, as a young adult, I struggled with the idea that it was up to me to change any of that. Our broken relationship wasn’t my fault. He was the adult and had chosen not to support his children when we needed him most. 64

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I imagine he would have been a simple man Content to live the country life Work through the week Church on Sunday And lazy days shooting the breeze I imagine he wouldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been a good dad Laughing and playing in the evening Reading a story and tucking me in I imagine someone unlike him For he is not any of these things Of a girl whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d never know

Summer 2018

I didn’t like him. I didn’t dislike him. I didn’t let myself feel anything beyond surface level affection for him. How was I supposed to feel about the man who’d hurt my heroine and broken my brother’s heart? I didn’t want to feel because when I did, it always ended in disappointment. He would do what he couldn’t help but do - push buttons he hadn’t earned the right to push and say things that he didn’t have the right to say. By the time I was a young adult, I’d compartmentalized him. I found myself ignoring his calls and letting them go to voicemail, not to be returned. He began receiving mental health services for depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder a few years after my mother left. To this day he still receives these services. Depression and fear based anxiety have plagued him most of his adult life and being bipolar was likely a cause for my mother leaving when she did. When I visited him and saw him still living in condemnable conditions, I didn’t understand why he couldn’t just do what he needed to. I couldn’t have my children around that and as it got worse, I found myself visiting that small town less and less. Part of me knew it wasn’t all his fault, that there were things unseen that he struggled and battled with. There was a pull inside of him between changing and being afraid of change. And then the depression would get worse or he’d have a bipolar episode or an anxiety attack and the progress he was the window.

one of the holes that nothing else and no story and I wanted a better ending. I started to write and often imagined rewriting his life into something victorious. I wanted him to have an ending worthy of the name he carried and the faith by which he lived. Another year passed by with us remaining disconnected. For the sake of my own mental health, I again removed the toxicity from my life, until there was some way to help him or help him help himself.

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had a reason to feel optimistic that there was something I could do that might help him. I felt compelled to help as if suddenly there was some personal responsibility I held for his well-being. If I could help him be clearer in his thinking, maybe I could talk to him. If I could talk to him, maybe I could know him. My devout Christian father was also weary of feeling depressed and heavy, and he was willing to let me try something on him. I’ve always been his baby girl, despite the time that had passed and the emotional and physical distance. He trusted me to give him Reiki and do a spirit release on him. He was surprised at how he felt afterward. or ten minutes. I’ve since begun to understand that the fear of change, from what is familiar, causes anxiety and panic attacks. He clings to possessions even if they’re ragged and worse for the wear, like a security blanket. Possible loss and loneliness quickly spiral into depression after forty subconsciously for the missing part of me that he is, he has been searching for the missing part of himself – the family he lost. Keeping things helps him fend off the sense of loss. He can’t restore the experience of being a father but he can still be the granddad I wished for my children. My father still has work to do and needs to retrain himself from a lifetime of feeling powerless. But he’s begun. I saw him again recently of life that he spent any time with his grandfather. We talked, laughed, and ate. He was different - a difference even people who see him in town have noticed.

Summer 2018

I know that, like the rest of us, he has his demons and though a few may have been cast out, there are others he continues to battle. He has to choose to be the man he wants to be and I can’t do it for him. No one can. He does have mental health conditions and after to believe he always will. I don’t have the answer to that and I don’t need to have it. What I can offer is a daughter’s love. I can offer an ear when he wants to talk about what he did at church or ask how he can listen to his favorite gospel singer on the phone I bought him. I can encourage him to get out of the place he’s living – physically and mentally.

where I can meet the man I never knew. It’s taken forty years, a lot of tears, and healing for both of us. However, now when he calls, I answer and say, “Hi, Dad.” When we end our call and he says “I love you,” I can honestly say, “I love you too.” By Bernette Sherman www.BernetteSherman.com

best selling author and writer creating miracles program

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What I Learned From the Trees By Nanci Barton In the Spring of 2010, I would have described my life as happy if I were asked. I lived, worked, and played in and around the downtown core of Halifax. My life was typical of a city lifestyle, busy, and sometimes, using that word we so very often do in this day and age, stressful. I never questioned it, why would I, I was happy, or so I thought. Within a month, everything that made up my happy life was pulled out from under my feet. I had a back injury and was informed by my doctor that I would have to take a year off work to recover. My boyfriend, who’s house I was living in, informed me that he had met someone at a golf tournament, and was ending our relationship. My grown, well adjusted All of the faces that Nanci wore, were stripped bare in a very short time. I later learned a term to describe this time in my life from Dr Darren Weissman, the creator of The Lifeline Technique. I was being presented with “a gift in strange wrapping paper.”

Cornerbrook, in a little chalet tucked in the woods by a river. me with graphic descriptions of what would happen if I wasn’t careful with these precious herniated discs. Fear is a powerful thing. Funny thing was, the more I walked, the stronger

Summer 2018

I started the YES program and learned yoga philosophy, meditation, vegan diet, mind clearing, and experienced Enlightenment Intensive Retreats. And I do mean intensive! But none of my courses taught me as much as the trees did. I would sit on the floor and practice meditation, and although I experienced a place where my thoughts weren’t, it was in the woods that I experienced silence. Trying to get away from our busy heads is not discovering stillness. I remember the first time I realized that the woods smell different after the rain, that a bird’s song has a beautiful melody. The breeze blowing through the leaves, and the ripple of tiny waves

over the rocks in a stream is actually healing. Mother Nature provided me with all the medicine I would ever need for my healing. A year later, I bought myself camping gear for my birthday. Pretty sure some of my city friends thought this city girl had finally lost her mind. What’s ironic is that I actually had. The busy thoughts that were my constant companion had diminished. Contentment and serenity surrounded me like an old comfy blanket. 70

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A true love, that had nothing to do with another, blossomed in my heart. The trees taught me this. In the years that followed 2010, I continued to lean more about the divine healing energy that Mother Earth makes available to us all for free. I watched a documentary called “Grounded” that shows how connecting directly to the Mother Earth helped heal a town in Alaska. I became friends with The Walking Monk, who teaches and practices pilgrimage. He literally walked across our country from Cape Spear, NL to Vancouver Island, BC in 1996. The amazing thing is he did the return trip in 2003 and is still

walking to this day. The point, my friends, is get out there. Get your hands dirty. Sleep under the stars, swim in the waves of the ocean, feel the warm breeze on your face, dip your toes in a cool stream. You have my promise it will be far more healing than any prescription. The trees taught me this..... By Nanci Barton www.therisingphoenix.ca

Photos courtesy of Melody Rose

Make A Global Impact Earth Day 2018 We invited readers on our Facebook Page to send us photos of their Earth Day activities

Friday was my day to celebrate Earth Day. First, I dropped my daughter off at school and then I headed to a favourite local forest I frequent for my personal and business walks. I take people for Forest Bathing and Nature Connected Coaching walks to help them connect to themselves and to Nature. Today was a free trial walk day, and it turned out to be only me, which I also really enjoy. Nothing better than a forest to myself on a beautiful morning! I love Earth Day. It’s a day where everyone, or most people, are more conscious about how we treat the Earth. I’d love for everyone to not do it just today, or this weekend, but that they’d

do it every day. I wish that when people go shopping, they’d walk, bring reusable bags, think of what they’re buying, where it’s coming from, how it’s packaged, what it’s made of, and how it impacts the Earth. This is why I started my business “Fir Real Nature”, nature connected coaching and forest bathing walks. I would like for people to go into the forest, the beach, or wherever they go to enjoy nature. We also need to realize that we need to protect nature, take better care of it. In doing that, we are taking better care of ourselves, and Mother Earth will take care of us too. We are all in this together.

Summer 2018

At the beginning of my walk, I sat against a “baby” fir tree, and became emotional thinking about Earth Day. After a while, I got up and walked through the forest. Being surrounded by, touching, and hugging trees always makes me feel calm, safe, and comforted. Even though it was a cool morning, I removed my socks and shoes. I wanted to walk barefoot and do some “Earthing.” It was an almost instant sense of relief and calmness. Along the way I stopped to hug “my tree”. Feeling much better, I put my shoes back on and continued to my car. Next stop was a class of 19 kindergarteners to plant bean seeds. When I found out there were no plans of planting anything, I could not have that! I quickly arranged to bring enough supplies so they each could plant a bean seed to take home. I promised myself I would be better prepared for next year with tree seeds. Before going outside on this sunny day to plant, their teacher read the Dr. Seuss book, “Oh Say Can You Seed?” which my daughter brought to school from home. It was a fairly long book for these youngsters, however, they seemed captivated.

I was so happy to see all the eager and excited children as they each filled their pot, poked a hole into the dirt with their little fingers, and added 2 seeds each. They carefully watered it and headed back inside to make labels. I told them that as the trees drop their seeds; acorns, “helicopters”, etc, they could bring them home and plant them and have a tree all their own. The look of amazement on some of those adorable faces, some who had never planted a seed before today, was priceless! This may have been the best Earth Day ever! (Until next year) By Melody Rose www.FirRealNature.ca

best selling author and writer creating miracles program WWW.BERNETTESHERMAN.COM

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Where Did My Friends Go? My life was full; I had a career, I was married, I had a great house and I had a lot of friends. My social life was very busy; parties, gatherings, dinners, drinks at quaint bars, and game nights. I was in my 20’s and I thought I was happy. It turned out I wasn’t. When I was in my late 20’s, I started to explore who I was. Not who I was when I was at work, not as a daughter, or wife. But who was I? Apparently I was ready to learn who that was as the people I needed to help me discover that started to appear. were, found the right path for me, and I sailed along very merrily. Now I felt life was complete. But wait….. something changed. One day I realized that most of my friends were….gone. Where did they go? Life changes was one reason, some moved away due to career opportunities in other places. But that was only a couple. Where were the rest? Then, it them going away, it was me. I changed. Once I realized who I was and what I wanted out of life, how I reacted to certain people changed. I no longer could tolerate negative people, people that always complained, those that never wanted to better their life. Then there were some that just did not understand, or like, the path I chose. They thought it was weird, that I was weird.

So slowly, over time, they disappeared, one by one. I had to make a choice. Do I go back to being my old self and get my friends back or do I continue on, enjoying who I was becoming? I choose me. And then guess what happened? I met new people! People that liked me for who I was! Suddenly, my social life was busy again, however this time it was with more meaningful activities. Fifteen years later, I stepped out as a Shamanic/spiritual teacher. After some time, when my student base was growing, and they began to truly trust me, I began to hear the same question again and again. The question was “I just realized my friends and family have disappeared, why?” I explained my own situation, to let them know they are not alone in that. I explained that when we grow, when we truly become who we are, not all our family members and friends can handle it. They fear for us, do not understand us, or simply, do not like it. So, they go away. I then reassured them that new friends, that will accept them for who they are, will come along. And happily, some of them have become mine! Never allow anyone to tell you who to be – you get to decide that! By Angela Jeffreys

Summer 2018

Grounding & Protection for the Sensitive Soul I felt like someone had physically struck me in the gut. As if the wind was knocked out of me. I stood holding the phone a small distance from my ear, attempting to create a layer of protection. The careless words of the man on the other end felt like an emotional assault, leaving me in a state of speechless blunderment. The ability to formulate a word, let alone a string of words resembling a thought, had been blown away. The wit and will, which for some, incite a strong mechanism of defensive retort, for me as someone highly sensitive - I withered and shrank down into a lowly corner of my mind. Instead of defending myself I went straight into people pleasing mode, assuming I was wrong and he was right. The attack had been most effective and whether to avoid further confrontation and the accompanying aggressive energy of it, or to simply act in selfpreservation, I began consoling him. Though I had, in reality, been the victim of a kind of narcissistic abuse. Instead of focusing on the attack, I took on his feelings, as if they superimposed mine, and I felt sorry for him. How many of us subconsciously prioritize making things better for others at the cost of our own well-being?

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This is especially true of sensitive individuals, those who have not yet developed strong boundaries, and those who consider themselves â&#x20AC;&#x153;empathsâ&#x20AC;?. Empaths are highly empathetic individuals who not only sympathize with the suffering or problems of others, but actually feel them. Empaths also, often take on the pain or issues as their own. Many sensitive people believe their feelings are somehow invalid. For some, the weight of past wounds becomes a steel gate through which no emotion, even the positive ones, such as love, can pass. In that case, the protective layer becomes an impermeable membrane that, while shielding us from harmful things, also keeps us from the wonderful things we could experience. We donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to go to that extreme either. Here I will focus on those who have chosen to feel, without proper understanding of how to set permeable boundaries. Encouraging Emotional Attunement Our current technological and material driven society breeds a kind of

generations coming up are engrossed in a world that is all about “me”. We are saturated with many hundreds of ways to digitally “connect” with others, which has left us, ironically, completely disconnected from the world right in front of us. This severs us from the very important connection we should form with others, from our empathy. For parents, it is important to be conscious of this and consider rationing the time children spend with technology. Encourage and create time for nature and real physical play in the three-dimensional world. Encourage conversations about feelings, thoughts, impressions and connection. This will allow children’s emotional intelligence to evolve and help them to cultivate attunement with their own unique expression. Empathy is Your Superpower History has long maintained an imbalanced dynamic of the “strong” overwhelming the “weak”. This narrative is constantly reinforced today- with action movies, through dramas, and in the media galore. We are constantly shown allegories of lead characters whose strength lies in holding back all emotion, in not breaking down, and in not allowing any sliver of their feeling to pierce through. We think, “They are so brave!” We internalize that this is what strength looks like. Through this narrative we believe power is in showing no emotion. We allow the loudest and most aggressive to impose their will and their point of view, while the gentle and less intrusive of us are left holding a phone, consoling the intruder, second guessing the legitimacy of our own pain, and asking ourselves how we can help them feel better.

Summer 2018

Sensitivity is not a weakness, it is our superpower. We are empowered in our empathy and compassion. We are empowered in our ability to connect, to share, to care and to not shrink under the immensity of the inevitable emotional tidal waves. Let’s get one thing straightthe wisdom and inner strength it takes to be sensitive in a world with so much violence and animosity far surpasses the strength of forfeiting to apathy or detachment. We must engage with our feelings. Know them, love them, and hear them. That is where the truth lives, and it is a truth that must be felt. It is within our power to tap into that vein.

to identify the root of any persistent toxic patterns in relationships.]

with healing, expansive awareness, and love.

will resonate with a particular aspect of your own energy, or with a situation or event you can connect it to. What is not yours will come on quickly, typically after an interaction with someone who is troubled, or has vented to you. We are affected by those close to us, but also by strangers, someone we just pass by for a moment. Examine the origin of any unfamiliar emotion.

Grounding and Protection There are many variations of unhealthy automatic responses when faced with an emotional attack: ~Feeling we deserved the attack ~Feeling guilt about something we did, or did not do ~Taking blame for something that someone else did. To rectify these uncomfortable feelings in the moment we might: ~Invalidate our own feelings to make another feel better ~Circumvent our own needs to put another’s needs above ours These are typical responses for empathetic individuals who have not learned to set strong boundaries. [I also want to lay down an important disclaimer that if these scenarios sound all too familiar, there may be some deeper healing work to do for yourself

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Differentiating what is “yours”, and what is not, is vital for sensitive individuals. When we have not set healthy boundaries, we may act as a magnet for other people’s unresolved or unexpressed issues, pain, and grief. This can cause us to feel sad without knowing why, or to feel irritated and agitated without a logical stimulus. To know what is yours, get in tune with your own body, your own emotions and listen to yourself, begin to recognize and identify your own natural cycles

Sensitivity is not a weakness, it is our superpower.

We need to set healthy boundaries and stop apologizing—that is key. You have a right to your limits. You don’t have to explain or qualify them to anyone. If you feel uncomfortable, you have a right to that it becomes a frequent companion. Practice setting permeable boundaries by “shielding”. This is something you can do to protect yourself when you are in a crowded space with many different energies, or a situation where you know You can set the intention to allow loving to protect yourself from the unwanted toxic energy that others may carelessly discharge.

“I am a good person, I am strong.” “I am connected to love at all times.” “I am safe and I am cared for.” These are examples of some positive thoughts you can make your own. These powerful intentions can greatly shape your life. We have a right to walk away, to end a conversation, and to set boundaries for our own well-being. Listen to yourself when those subtle alarms go off telling you it is time to set a limit. Recognize that how you feel is valid. Your job is not to make anyone comfortable at the cost of and then extend that love outward. No one has a right to make their problems your problems. It is ok to feel what is yours and let go of the rest.

time to connect to the earth with your bare feet and hands, get down low to allow gravity to settle you into your body and feel connected to your own being. This helps strengthen your energetic boundaries and be in tune with your own needs. Breathing is fundamental as well. Breathe deeply, breathe often, breathe slowly. Allow yourself to not only take cleansing healthy inhales, but on your exhale consciously release and let go of anything, anything, that you have been holding onto that does not serve you. It never serves us, or improves a situation, to obsessively cling to it. and replace any worries or negative thoughts with some powerful positive I need to be.” “My feelings are valid.” “I am worthy of respect.” universalhiddeninsight.weebly.com Summer 2018

The Message In Numbers By Maria Morales

This morning I woke up to the numbers 5:55, the time displayed on my digital change is in the horizon! As I prepared my body to gear up and get ready to go to the gym for my early morning workout, I was excited and eager to see how the day would present itself for me. 5 is the number of change, adventure and curiosity. The digits 555 magnify the energy of 5 three-fold; there will be a shift or surprise in my day when I see this sequence. It reminds me to keep my thoughts positive; I had struggled the previous week with negative thoughts and self-destructive back talk.

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Later in the afternoon, as I prepared lunch, the numbers 1:11 appeared on the digital display of my microwave. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Keep my thoughts positive, for my thoughts are processing instantly, pay attention and listen to my intuitionâ&#x20AC;?. The number 1 is independence, individuality and originality. Take heed when there is a recurring sequence of 1â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s showing up. Your intuition is heightened and your ability to manifest desired or are on the right path, the repetitive sequence of the number 1 is a message of encouragement to stay the course, embrace your individuality and courage, as you are divinely guided.

There is an urgency for me to change my perspective and create an emotional shift for my own wellbeing. The struggle was real for me to change my outlook, and with the repetitive sequence of these number appearing, I had to pay attention. Throughout my life, I had always been curious about the meaning of seeing repetitive numbers and what they meant. It was obviously a message from the Universe, my guides and/or angels nudging me to pay attention. Each number carries an energetic value and meaning; and when combined, offers additional insight or a special message. the numbers that appear for me. Those sequences can lift my spirits and give me hope when I am feeling down.

day back to work after a short vacation; I felt the need to shield myself from created an internal shift, and changed my mindset.... the day was drama free and my anxiety took a backseat to a Lately, there has been great interest from my friends, family and colleagues inquiring about the meaning of seeing certain sequences of the numbers such as 111, 444, 555. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Is this a divine message from the Universe for me?â&#x20AC;? Inquiring minds want to know, so this is my cue to write about this and share what I receive.

Summer 2018

111 Pay attention to your thoughts, keep your mind-set focused on a positive outcome for what you desire. You are in the process of manifesting instantly. If the thoughts are negative, a negative outcome. If your thoughts are positive, a positive outcome. Listen to your intuition, you are being divinely guided, therefore release your fears and your doubts.

You are at the right place at the listen closely to what is not being and preconceived opinions whe This moment is as it should be. E highest good of all involved. Yo

444 It is most important that you ground yourself, create more stability in your life, begin that now. Pay attention to your health and begin working on the healthy changes.. This is a time to Make these positive changes that will sustain you. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t give up on your dreams! Your hard work and discipline will pay off. You are protected and surrounded by your angels! Nothing is impossible!

When you think outside of the b are unstoppable! Change is in t people, have new adventures! Y a major shift!

777 through meditation and time spent alone. Satisfy your curiosity and delve into the metaphysical work you are curious about. Check in with your internal compass. You are receiving deeper understand of the mysteries of the Universe. Your religious beliefs may be challenged or you may become more involved with a religious organization.

life. Keep your thoughts positiv people to come into your life. prosperity.

I believe there is power in knowledge and comfort in knowing that we receive information and messages in all forms every day. For me, numbers have always been my Oracle. Whenever I see recurring numbers, it is the Universe yelling at me to pay attention!

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right time. Trust all will be well, g said, hold back your judgment en communicating with others. Everything will work out for the our intuition is heightened.

Speak your truth. This is the number of creative expression, joy and play. Be mindful and aware of negative interactions that promote gossip, criticism and complaining. It is also a sign of protection and being surrounded by your Ascended Masters/

666

box and follow your passion you the horizon! You will meet new Your life is about to go through

Pay attention to heart, home, health, family and relationships. Create a space of beauty and peace. Take time to nurture yourself, take care of your health. This is a period when care of family/ loved ones will occupy a great deal of your attention. It is important that you maintain a balance, so you are not a doormat. Make sure that you do not put too much importance on material things, stay focused on what is important in your life and nurture that.

999

ve, knowing that by doing this Success is inevitable, be wary

You are coming to the end of a chapter or situation in your life. This is a time of completion. This is a time of tying up loose ends, transition, letting go of dead weight and what no longer serves you. Do not look back, move ahead. This a time for forgiveness, a time to heal relationships with others, a time to self-heal. Accept what you cannot change, as you move forward in creating a new reality for yourself.

So, the next time you wake up and you see a recurring number or read a license plate on the car in front of you with a repetitive sequence... pay attention. The magic is in the details of these digits and what they represent, and they have a message for you. Join Maria in her radio show every Friday night at 6pm Pacific/9pm Eastern on Beacon of Light Radio www.beaconoflightradio.com Summer 2018

In The Next Issue Lisa shares how sacred geometry

Join Sudie as she discusses the struggle

Ana has found the courage to show us the compassion and healing required for both victims and

Rachel discusses Birth and Death

Mark tells us all about how Is An

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Summer 2018

Meet Our Newest Team Members! Ana Bokstrom Ana Bokstrom has a passion for helping people heal without trauma or drugs. Ana co-hosts/produces a radio talk show focussing on the positive shifts in peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lives and communities that brings her into contact with a wide range of www.facebook.com/shifthappens.media

Holli Smith Holli is a homeschooling mom, writer, and owner/operator of an off-grid/eco ranch, where she facilitates horse and nature programs to promote health, wellbeing, and reconnection with energy and soul. She is a Content Editor/writer for Celestine Vision, and is working on bringing multiple projects to life.

Jeff Pilsner Multi-media producer, photographer and radio show host, named his radio show Shift Happens. His focus is on how to be a spiritual man in a dualistic world. http://shifthappensnow.ca

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Kelly Aiello Kelly is a nutritionist and educator, specializing in neuronutrition, blood-sugar imbalances, and digestive disorders. She empowers and inspires clients to regain control over their health and become their best selves. Consultations available in person and online. Visit Kellyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website for her full story, blog, and whole-food recipes. www.happihuman.com

Nanci Barton in the The Lifeline Technique with Dr Darren Weissman. Nanci created Phoenix Rising- Mind & Body Rejuvenation and hosts Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Retreat weekends in British Columbia and Nova Scotia. www.therisingphoenix.ca

Rachel Hart preserving the fundamental belief that women were perfectly designed to conceive, grow, and give birth. Her own four children were born safely and naturally at home. Rachel is Midwifery Association. www.birthingway.com

Rylee Smith Rylee Smith is a furniture salesman by day, and a metaphysical minister, a student, and a writer by night. She spends the rest of her free time reading, playing with her dogs, and teaching horseback riding. Rylee has had an interest in mindful living and spirituality since a young age.

Summer 2018

Business Connections Businesses that help you on your path.

Authors

Hypnotherapy

(con’t)

Lisa Falcon G

Maria Morales

discovery, deeper healing, and soul awakening in today’s world. Find out more at universalhiddeninsight.weebly.com.

sessions and personal sessions for Past Life Regression, Erasing Phobias, and Health and Lifestyle Changes (i.e. Diet and Exercise), Hypnobirth, Medical Hypnotherapy.

Life Coaching Nina is an inspirational writer and poet.

Courses/Workshops Sudie Crouch Online workshops to help you live a life of intention and connect to your inner voice. Topics focus on recognizing personal power and how to set clear boundaries for yourself. Phone:770-744-0488 Angela Jeffreys, Blue Crow Inspirations Classes and courses via on-line, e-course, in-person, and weekend retreats. Topics include Psychic Development, Mediumship, Shamanism, Dreams, Chakras, Meditation, Tarot, Healing and www.bluecrowinspirations.com

Herbal Apothecary Two Drunk Witches Your modern apothecary, featuring uniquely crafted botanical self-care products from soothing herbal salves to replenishing facial serums, see what we’re brewing! From Victoria, BC Phone: 250 213-9762 www.twodrunkwitches.com

Hypnotherapy Angela Jeffreys, Blue Crow Inspirations Provides private and group sessions to explore contracts. Offers programs such as Removing Money Blocks, Principles of the Soul. www.bluecrowinspirations.com 86

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Tess Adams connect with their own truths and create life altering shifts. Email: www.TessAdamsCoaching.com Sudie Crouch Helping introverts, empaths and highly sensitive people navigate an increasingly noisy world with love and compassion. Email and live video coaching available, as well as group/community workshops online. Phone 770-744-0488 Bernette Sherman Intuitive guidance coach with a goal of empowering you to live the life you want and do the things you love. Learn more about her services at www.BernetteSherman.com.

Life Coach Instructors Tess Adams Become an Intuitive Life Coach with Tess. www.TessAdamsCoaching.com

Marketing and Admin Support 2 the Power of 1 Wellness Network Are you a practitioner who doesn’t enjoy the “business” side of your practice? Let us do it for you. Marketing campaigns, Video production, web design, admin support… http://2thepowerof1.com

Midwifery

Shamanism

Rachel Hart Midwifery. Providing prenatal, birth, postpartum care in the home setting.

and

Motivational Speaking Leah Parsons Speaking out on Rape Culture, Trauma & Resiliency, Cyber Abuse and Mental Health. To book Leah for your group or event, contact www.rehtaehparsons.ca Bernette Sherman Bernette is an engaging inspirational speaker sharing life principles from personal experiences and her books. She is also a poet and vocalist fusing socially conscious and inspirational messages into her works. www.BernetteSherman.com

Numerology Maria Morales Offering Numerology Charts and Readings with Oracle Cards. Discover your passion, insight on your Life Path and Relationships.

Nutritional Services Kelly Aiello Consultations in neuronutrition, blood sugar imbalances, and digestive disorders. Sessions can be in person or online if not local. www.HappiHuman.com Phone: 250-574-5044

Photography Provides portraits, events, architecture, and real estate photography services. Crystal and spiritual stock photography available for sale. Ph: 902-404-8677 www.marcgeuzinge.com

Angela Jeffreys, Blue Crow Inspirations Providing classes on various Shamanic subjects, i.e. Beginner, Soul Retrieval, Psychopomp Offers Shamanic Soul Retrieval Healing sessions and journeys to remove negative energies. www.bluecrowinspirations.com

Skin Care Two Drunk Witches Your modern apothecary, featuring uniquely crafted botanical self-care products from soothing herbal salves to replenishing facial serums, see what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re brewing! From Victoria, BC 250 213-9762 www.twodrunkwitches.com

Spiritual Development Lisa Falcon G, Spiritual Consultant & Facilitator Offers Spiritual Life Coaching, Reiki healing, and workshops on ancient wisdom, self-healing, soul awakening, personal activation, and more. Website: universalhiddeninsight.weebly.com

Wellness Kelly Aiello Consultations in neuronutrition, blood sugar imbalances, and digestive disorders. Sessions can be in person or online if not local. www.HappiHuman.com Phone: 250-574-5044 2 the Power of 1 Wellness Network Need a practitioner? We are a network of client recommended wellness professionals covering practitioner for your needs. http://2thepowerof1.com

Yoga Instructors

Publishing

Leah Parsons One on one private yoga available. Weekly

Anne Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Connell, OC Publishing Book editing, author mentoring, writer coaching,

held Sunday Evenings at 6pm, 122 Portland St, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. For more info

assistance, self publishing guidance, social media set-up assistance. www.ocpublishing.ca Summer 2018

Event Listings The Maria Morales Show Healers and Shamanic Teacher.

Shift Happens Radio Show with Ana Bokstrom and Jeff Pilsner Thought provoking and mind-bending conversations about the Shifts in peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lives and communities. Tuesdays 3-4pm, Sundays 11am-noon Streamed live on http://kootenaycoopradio.com Podcast on http://shifthappens.media

The Grief Retreat - Rehtaeh Parsons Society Brigadoon Village, 1650 North River Road, Aylesford, Nova Scotia September 28-30, 2018 Healing grief with Yoga, hiking, kayaking, grief circles, art and great food.

The Rising Phoenix Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Retreat Wild Renfrew, Port Renfrew, Vancouver Island, British Columbia Nov 2-4, 2018 Weekend package includes accommodation, meals and event. Extra services available at an additional cost. For details and weekend agenda http://therisingphoenix.ca/agenda-renfrew

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Summer 2018

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