Good News Day 11: The Power of Touch

 

Setting aside judgement and fear to help someone in need. ~Tricia

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Source: Ehab Taha

A woman’s kind-hearted gesture made a world of a difference to a man who was “being aggressive” on a train.

 

 

Source: Photo captures elderly woman’s kind gesture to aggressive man on train

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Good News Day 10: 8 Photos That Inspired Action

We’re one-quarter of the way through 40 Days of Good News! It’s not hard to find heartwarming posts, pictures, short news clips, but I do find it a little bit of a challenge to find something with a little more content, a little more “meat on its bones” that inspires and gives hope.I hope you’re finding hope and inspiration in these posts as much as I am!

Here is another one that shows the positive power of art. ~Tricia

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National Geographic Photo Blog

Source: 8 Photos That Inspired Action

Good News Day 8: Today is Random Act of Kindness Day

While every day presents opportunities to be kind, take a moment or two today to make someone else’s day with a little random act of kindness. Stuck for some ideas? Here are a few to get you started:

• Smile at a stranger
• Send an anonymous gift
• Bring treats to work
• Send a friend or family member a homemade card
• Leave positive comments on a blog or post
• Compliment a friend
• Compliment a stranger
• Brush the snow off someone’s car or clean their windshield
• Leave a positive message with management about a waiter or cashier or other hardworking employee of a business you frequent
• Help your neighbor shovel snow (or mow the lawn, depending on where you live!)
• Leave sticky notes with positive messages on restroom mirrors
• Pay for the coffee/toll/snack of the person behind you
• Pick up an extra bag of dog or cat food and drop it off at a shelter
• Offer to return someone’s shopping car for them while they’re loading their car
• Say “Thank You” to someone making a difference

There are countless ways to make someone’s day a little brighter. What random act of kindness will you do?

Good News Day 7: Pazamanos – Using Creative Arts Installations to Help Us See Each Other’s Humanness

Art as a means of social awareness instead of angry words and shouting … priceless. ~Tricia

We would like to kick off our mission to shine a light on what’s positive in Colombia with Pazamanos, a 4-year-old organization working primarily in the poorer neighborhoods of Medellin. Pazamanos, meaning peace through hands, aims – through creative arts

Source: ‘Changing the world is tough but it’s worth it’ Interview with Pazamanos

Good News Day 6: Iron Boy to the Rescue!

Because: Cute Kid, Iron Man, and Robert Downey, Jr … ~Tricia

This nine-year-old superhero springs into action to save his city with help from local police, the Make-a-Wish Foundation and Robert Downey, Jr.

Source: Sydney Rallies to Let 9-yo Superhero Rescue the City as Iron Boy (WATCH)

 

For All The Childless Mommies On Mother’s Day | Owning Pink

A beautiful post from Owning Pink:

For All The Childless Mommies On Mother’s Day | Owning Pink.

An’ do what ye will…

People who have made the decision to walk down the path of “non-traditional” spirituality, or have chosen to openly declare themselves a psychic or a medium, know what an interesting and sometimes extremely challenging path that can be.

There are, of course, inherent challenges to any type of spiritual path. To do it right, you really need to be willing to work on your own personal emotional and spiritual baggage. Much of what we share with others, be it in a psychic reading or spiritual counseling, is the result of our own experiences, soul searching, facing our inner demons, and learning to trust in what is frequently an intangible source of information and guidance.

And then, there are the social challenges. In my experience, things are a lot better today than they were 20-25 years ago. One of my first psychic fairs was picketed. I was accused of being a Satanist. One “friend” regularly told me he feared for my soul and that I was going to go to hell. Fortunately, I do not hold much stock in the “going to hell” aspect, and when I told him I thought he was hilarious, he gave up on me. 🙂

For these reasons, a lot of psychics over the years have taken on pseudonyms. Primary to avoid professional or private life repercussions related to what might happened if the “wrong person” discovered what they do.

In recent years, despite setbacks caused by high profile scam artists or well-intentioned fakes, the general metaphysical world seems to be viewed with a more open mind. Some of the same growing public open mindedness that has helped other fringe communities slowly find more mainstream acceptance has at least minimally decreased the number of people who freak out, react negatively, or sidle cautiously away when they hear about someone’s psychic work. At the minimum, I think there is more of a sense of live and let live. As long as you aren’t hurting someone, go for it.

For those who vehemently object to or publically scoff at the idea of psychic phenomenon, energy healing and people who communicate with spirits, it’s an interesting juxtaposition of ignorant and hypocritical thought patterns. I’ve heard the argument that science has been unable to conclusively prove that extrasensory perception, psychic intuition, or spirit communication works. Yet, ironically, some of the same people who forcefully deny the possibility of psychic phenomenon frequently believe fervently in an unseen, omnipotent god force or benevolent messiah.

These same people believe in the power of prayer, messages from god, and communing with Jesus, despite the fact that science has been unable to satisfactorily prove the existence of any of these beings either. Religious leaders heal with their words and their presence. They share the messages from God as presented by people who were called prophets. All the while only having minimal tangible proof of their existence.

I find it ironic that these beliefs somehow lead people to the conviction that it’s impossible for there to be unexplained phenomenon outside of a church, synagogue, or other religious institution. That they can’t find it within their hearts to believe that the God who works in mysterious ways can somehow work in other, even more mysterious ways.

Do not confuse a psychic or other intuitive who does not consider themselves religious with not being an otherwise extremely spiritual person. Most true, conscientious psychics work from a very strict set of moral, spiritual, and ethical standards.

Various versions of the adage “And it harm none, do what ye will” hold sway in Wiccan and psychic communities. The laws of karma have bearing around the world, and the idea that you give back what you give out. They work in the best interest of all involved, and they learn important rules of ethics, and seeking the permission of the people they’re reading for. Many of them spend years working on their own personal baggage in order to be better able to help with yours.

That’s not to say that every practicing psychic is a good person, or follows these rules exactly. Any more than every religious leader is an infallible, godly person. We are all human beings. We make bad choices, and we bear the consequences of these decisions one way or another.

So, I’ve rambled on for quite a while now, but the main point of this conversation was to remind people to think about the mysterious ways the universe works. Whether you’re considering someone’s psychic abilities, their belief in the paranormal, or even their religious beliefs, consider the possibilities presented by the things you DO believe in. Maybe there’s a lot more out there than even you believe.

The Baby Dichotomy

I have to count myself as fortunate that most people who know my husband and I have stopped asking why we don’t have kids. Now that we’re in our 40s, and we still don’t have them, I think most either presume that we just don’t want them or they know the painful truth – that I have had four miscarriages. It took a long time to conceive, and they just did not last.

For each pregnancy, we were equally hopeful, equally terrified, and then equally devastated. In a society where amazing medical breakthroughs happen all the time, we are left with what minimal insurance we can afford through the Affordable Care Act. And even when we had decent insurance, the kinds of things that would help us conceive -and stay pregnant- are financially beyond our reach.

Now that I am in my 40s, other complications add themselves to the mix. How can a person who was a high risk pregnancy in her 20s and 30s pull off such a miracle over the age of 40? After the last one a few years ago I firmly decided I never wanted to go through that again. Since then, I have waffled back and forth on a monthly, weekly, sometimes even daily basis. I think about my younger self, raised in a society where little girls grew up, got married, and had babies. That part of me thinks of myself as an abject failure. The core sense of being a woman, of how I was supposed to be someone’s mom, is broken.

I spend a lot of time telling myself that now that we’ve been married 20+ years, living the “no kids lifestyle” for so, so long, that there is no way we could possibly even adjust to being parents now. Then I waffle back and think well, we adjust to my husband’s changing jobs and going back to college. We adjust to my own rather regular changes in career and life directions. We are not yet so old and set in our ways that adjusting to being parents would be impossible.

Then, I waffled back to, yeah, but holy crap each failure sucks so much, and I really, really don’t want to go through that again. Then I waffled back to yeah, but what if… What if I really am meant to be someone’s mom? What if this next time IS the right time? What if by waffling in the wrong direction, we are missing out on that important little person in our life? Then, I waffle back to, well, we don’t have very good insurance. How could we even financially afford the medical expenses that could likely result from the trying to make this one last effort stick?

Maybe we could adopt. This is something we’ve considered. But again, the financial uncertainty scares me. Other random fears like adopting a child with physical or mental/emotional troubles terrifies me. At the same time I realize that even a child of my own could have the same troubles, so that’s not really all that much of an excuse. Then, there is the decision of trying to adopt a baby, or adopting an older child, and all those different implications.

What is the answer? I don’t know yet. I suppose the clock really is ticking at this point and decisions should be made. I should, of course, better educate myself on some of my options. But naturally, we often find ourselves “too busy” for those things which are the really difficult, even painful, decisions.

Why do I even feel compelled to share this story with the unknown (and known) public? Many reasons, I suppose. First of all, I am fairly certain I not the first woman in history, or possibly even the only woman I know, going through this situation. I want to help others maybe feel less alone and dysfunctional, while helping myself feel less alone and dysfunctional in the process.

I was also intuitively compelled to share it. I’m not even entirely sure where it came from. Maybe one of those countless posts that go by on Facebook about the bond between a parent and child, or “share if you have awesome kids”. Maybe I’m not the only one sometimes tempted to share them because I think my fur kids are pretty awesome.

Maybe I share it because someone out there right now needed to know that they aren’t crazy for having the same waffling thought train.

Maybe someone else needed to read it and think twice before asking their friend or family member or coworker, for the countless number of times, why they don’t have kids yet.

Maybe someone else needs to see that a spiritual person working on walking a spiritual, awakened path does not always have their shit together as well as you might imagine.

Maybe it’s to help those naysayers who dispute continued efforts to improve and expand our healthcare system that it’s not just lazy, dysfunctional sponges that need help and access to better health and reproductive care, but every day, average, hard-working, loving human beings that could use a little more help preventing the massive financial burdens caused by health care expenses of every flavor.

Maybe it’s every one of these things, and more, that someone out there needs to hear. Meanwhile, I will go back to working on getting my shit together, while hopefully giving you a little more insight on your own…  (:

Love & Light

Why I Choose to Teach

As I was planning my upcoming class on psychic self awareness, I began to consider the reasons why I share the things I share on this blog and why it is I feel I should teach. It’s pretty easy to say, “the universe/God/powers that be say that I should teach, and therefore I am”. But after thinking about it, I realized that in way, that is sort of copping out, not taking responsibility for your decisions or actions. Plus I am a fan of free will, so hey.

What I want to offer to the world is a common sense, real, no frills introduction to intuition, psychic awareness, self-awareness, spiritual and social responsibility. While I appreciate the work that many of the big name psychics and mediums over the last decades have done to help make this field more mainstream, I also feel that it has in some ways also created a little bit of a sense of elitism. It is easy to start to feel like you have to have been born with or developed astounding psychic gifts at a very early age in order to have them at all.

In truth, you do not need a PR team and flashy gifts to learn to recognize and use your own intuition. You don’t need your own television show to help people and make the world a better place. With a little guidance and practice anyone can become more aware of themselves and the world around them and begin to build on that awareness.

Whether you simply want to learn how to be more intuitive or if you think that you would like to learn skills that will enable you to guide and heal others, it is possible to find a path that suits you. You don’t need to give up your religious beliefs, and you should never feel you need to compromise your values. Like anyone who works to teach, heal and guide others, it should always be done in the highest and best interest of all those involved.

Sometimes it is hard for those new to the concept to see past the glitter and more seemingly esoteric theories. They are intimidated, uncertain and even frightened of what they don’t understand. I was very intimidated when I first began to explore the idea intuition and self-awareness, but I was fortunate enough to have a teacher who had a steady, no-nonsense, grounded, and loving philosophy, and I know first hand the life changing effects that working on yourself and developing your own spiritual awareness can have. (Thank you, Ruthanne!)

I have met many wonderful, grounded and “real” psychics, healers and teachers who have brought so much light to the world, it is a legacy I would like to see carried on. There may still be a place for the showier side of psychic abilities and awareness, and if that is something that you are drawn to in time, or if you want to go out in search of more wondrous and mysterious things, there are always those who are willing to share and teach you, and you will find them when you’re ready.

In the meantime, I feel drawn to share what I have learned over the past 20 plus years and help every day people develop their self-awareness, find their own light, expand from there if they would like, and help them begin to share it with the rest of the world.

Love & Light,

Tricia

Look in Your Mirror

Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.  ~Thomas à Kempis, Imitation of Christ, c.1420

One of the things that always makes me laugh/cry/shake my head/shake my fist/make plans to leave the planet is people who angrily, and all too often violently, berate, belittle, and judge others for their life decisions when they CLEARLY have not got their own shit together.  Forget just the simple idea of walking a mile in someone else’s shoes. How about checking what’s stuck on the bottom of your own?

Angry fist shaking aside, you even need to be cruel or self-righteous to find yourself making judgments on how people live their lives. Even the most kind hearted of us are prone to occasionally making uniformed judgments of people, or trying hard to change someone we are certain needs our help.

If there is something about someone in your life you are desperately trying to change, stop and ask yourself if perhaps they are where they are because that is simply where their path has led them at this point in their life. Then, take a moment and ask yourself if something about that person’s situation resonates with you because of something you need to change about yourself.

We find it significantly easier to poke and prod at someone else, and sigh because they aren’t making the changes you expect them to make, than to poke and sigh at ourselves for not making the changes we’d like to make. The problem with that is, the result is usually a worn out and disillusioned you.

So, if you’re feeling irritated with the people around you, or trying to make them behave differently, take some time to ask yourself if what is bothering you is really how it reflects something about yourself that you need to work on. It doesn’t have to be an exact mirror, but maybe something similar, a certain impatience, anger or intolerance in some situations that you see reflected back at you.

To quote Michael Jackson:

I’m Starting With The Man In The Mirror,
I’m Asking Him To Change His Ways
No Message Could Have Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself And Then Make The Change