Women Who Thrive, Change The World!

Posts tagged ‘Manifesting Your Dreams’

Women and Power

Maya Angelou

This video speaks for itself!  As you listen to each woman, remember that you too have a part to play in this global transformational shift.   We are being invited as women to examine the powerful creative expressions that we are holding inside and are being asked NOW to take action in whatever form is wanting to be birthed through us.

I invite you to go to Omega’s website as well to see other videos of keynote talks by some distinguished faculty at Omega Women’s Institute.  We all inspire and inform each other!!

http://www.eomega.org/omega/womens-institute/

“Omega’s annual Women & Power conference is one of the most celebrated women’s gatherings in the world, unique in its rich diversity of speakers, performers, and participants. The conference is dedicated to empowering women to bring hope, healing, and change into their own lives and to the world around them.

Last year, the conference was a call-out to women of all ages and backgrounds to become the leaders we have been waiting for. Whether you are a professional, activist, volunteer, student, artist, mother, spiritual seeker, or social visionary, it is time for us to dig deep, retrieve our authentic voice and values, and lead with courage and heart—at home, work, and in the world.”

 

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net

www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Authenticity, Creative Expression, Empowerment, Manifesting Your Dreams, Power and Leadership

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The Gift of Acceptance

Sorenna Elizabeth

I have just come back from visiting two of my sons,  and playing joyously and full on with my 3 year old granddaughter Sorenna.  As she grows quickly I see the amazing girl she is, and forsee the powerful woman she will become.

I watch Sorenna and see how absolutely at home she is in her body, her mind, and her playful and creative spirit.  She is not afraid to be exactly who she is – in the moment.  She operates from a place of full self  acceptance.  I yearn to be like her….

I often wonder why women – including myself at times – are frequently so hard on ourselves.  By that I mean attempting to fit into a “square hole” of our cultures making with our rounded, and curvy bodies (even if you are thin you have curves!!),  hearts, and psyches.

This week I was blessed to view two videos – both of which are here for you – that speak to acceptance in all of its many forms.  Here are two stunning women bringing themselves out to millions of people.  They are stunning because they both have a track record of saying yes to putting themselves out their within their particular creative art form, and they keep showing up to do just that.

One is a musician who has written many powerful songs for women as she speaks of her own life experience through her music, and the other is a young woman that very early on found her love of poetry and theater arts could be put together – and oh what a perfect fit for her!

The first is India Arie singing Gift of Acceptance at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert with a global message for all of us.  We are in a time on our planet when we are realizing more deeply that what affects one of us affects all of us.  I say that acceptance of ourselves at deep levels of loving care allow us to accept others as we do ourselves.  Just what the world needs!

The second video is a brilliant TED2011 talk by Sarah Kay that inspired two standing ovations.   “Sarah tells the story of her metamorphosis — from a wide-eyed teenager soaking in verse at New York’s Bowery Poetry Club to a teacher connecting kids with the power of self-expression through Project V.O.I.C.E. — and gives two breathtaking performances of “B” and “Hiroshima.”

To me this is not only especially inspiring for our girls and young women coming up….but also a reminder to us as mature women that with acceptance of all of who we are (warts, fears, wrinkles, sexual preferences, and all!), the best of our creative gifts are unearthed. It is within our uniqueness that our genius shines!

You will find it here:

 

http://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_kay_if_i_should_have_a_daughter.html

Will you be the next to step up “on stage”?  Dare ya!

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net

www.DivineWealthJournal.com

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Acceptance, Authenticity, Courage, Creative Expression, Self Love

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Stop Hiding – Women Stepping UP!

With the most recent devastation in Japan (and New Zealand not long ago) showing us how small our global village is, and the deep interconnectedness that pervades everything – we as women have before us a task that is of the utmost importance.

We MUST step up and into our knowing, be willing to learn new skills, and not be afraid to speak our truth and follow that with action.  This will often “upset the apple cart” of traditions and what has gone before (mindsets), yet we all know that many of the structures across the board that have been laid down are not sustainable, and haven’t been for a long time.

For example, our home -the earth – in no uncertain terms, is letting us know that new sustainable working solutions need to be created, implemented, and honored as the way that will connect our global village in peaceful and creative relationship/partnership.  We all want to survive…but even more to thrive.

I believe that everyone holds a key to creating the shift that is presently sweeping our planet to a more sustainable, socially and culturally just, and empowering world.  We can either fight against the changes, hide our face under the covers,  or we can ride the wave with determination, purpose, and surrender.

It takes both you see, for it is in the determination and purpose that we commit to – whatever our passion and free expression is –  and it is in the surrender or deep letting go, that we find the paths and solutions/resolutions that have been right before us all along.  It is here that our most ingenious and committed creations happen.  However, this also means that we first have to take the best care of our own beings in order to be sustainable ourselves.

As a long time supporter for Women For Women International I have been aware for a long time that women are at the forefront of global change by first empowering themselves and each other, then their families and communities.  Here is another example I came across recently reflecting this stepping up.

In the far away village of Tilonia in Rajasthan, India, where few tourists ever wander, an experiment has begun to bear fruit globally. Established in 1972, the Barefoot College is a non-government organization that has been providing basic services and solutions to problems in rural communities, with the objective of making them self-sufficient and sustainable.

This village is situated in arid land where water is scarce and poverty rampant.  Here is what  Sathya Saran says about women in this village:

“The women of the village work together with their menfolk towards sustainable development, and also help educate and inspire those in nearby villages to rise above the vagaries of nature and their hardships by effort and education.

Tolonia’s most famous export is the solar engineer concept.  Making the most of the abundant sunshine, the Barefoot College has trained its women to set up solar electrified systems that can provide light and power to entire villages.  In fact, the 80,000 square foot campus of the Barefoot College is electrified and maintained by the women solar engineers, most of whom have little or no formal education and live within the broad dictates of a rural, feudal, chauvinistic, male-dominated social milieu.

The women engineers are trained to create everything such a unit needs, to help install and run it, and to train the villagers of the receiving village to maintain and run the units themselves.

Going a step further, the Barefoot College also trains women from many other parts of the world to create this cheap, endurable and sustainable source of alternate energy, and how to take it in working condition to their respective villages.

Language and regional differences are forgotten in the giving and taking of knowledge so vital to better living. Women’s empowerment finds new meaning, as Tilonia’s solar-energy-giving-women help light lives across the world. “

These ‘Barefoot solutions’ can be broadly categorized into solar energy, water, education, health care, rural handicrafts, people’s action, communication, women’s empowerment and wasteland development.

So far, the Barefoot approach has been replicated in 17 states of India, 15 countries in Africa, 2 countries in Asia and 1 country in South America.

Barefoot Approach and its objectives:
*Provide sustainable solutions to improve the quality of life in poor, rural communities
*Reduce migration by generating employment within villages
*Provide vocational training to semi-literate and illiterate men and women through the process of learning-by-doing
*Reduce drudgery of rural women and girls by providing them access to education, vocational training, health care etc.
*Empower rural women socially, economically and politically
*Encourage community based, owned and managed initiatives
*Demystify technologies and decentralize their uses to improve their quality of living
*Use and promote traditional knowledge and skills that have been passed on through generations

Dr. Bunker Roy, the creator of Barefoot College, answers this question in an interview on Empowering Rural Women:

What do you think needs to be done by the Indian government to make the environment more enabling for enterprises such as yours?
Between 2004 and 2009, the Barefoot approach of training illiterate rural women to solar electrify their villages was extended to Africa. By this year, more than 100 semi-literate and illiterate grandmothers from 21 countries in Africa will have solar electrified their own villages. Under a unique scheme called ITEC, the Indian government has covered the air tickets and six months’ training costs to each of these grandmothers to come to India.
What the Barefoot College has effectively demonstrated is how sustainable the combination of traditional knowledge and demystified modern skills can be when the tools are in the hands of the rural poor. Our message has reached the far corners of the globe. The respect our community has for the Sun (solar electrification) is really a simple message which is easily replicable in inaccessible, neglected and backward communities all over the world.
For more of this interview go to:  http://gulfnews.com/news/world/india/empowering-rural-women-1.635403
This is just one of 1,000’s of efforts across the globe in which women hold a pivotal and vital role.  This is also where men and women can come together in equality and work on behalf of the betterment for all.

In one of my favorite stories, Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz stepped up over and over again in spite of her fears, and at the very end found that the bucket of water right in front of her was the key to melting her biggest fear embodied in the “Wicked Witch”.

Curiosity, willingness to engage and collaborate, and perceiving ourselves as an active participant with something to offer will pave the way.  I wonder what is right in front of us that will potentiate our coming out of hiding and stepping up??  Don’t forget, it can be simple….

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net

www.DivineWealthJournal.com

Category:

Authenticity, Manifesting Your Dreams, Union of Femine and Masculine, Vital Health & Well Being

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Contribution vs Making a Difference!

“…why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged. I was set free, because my greatest fear had been realized, and I was still alive, and I still had a daughter whom I adored, and I had an old typewriter and a big idea. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life. ~ J.K. Rowling

Having spent some time this weekend in Portland participating in the ritual of sharing 2011 vision boards with two beautiful women friends,  I realized that although I feel like I am on the inside of a cannon about ready to explode in a completely new direction –

Gaye's 2011 Vision Board

that it is the contribution I have to bring in this new direction, place, and creation of relationship that matters most.

As women we often feel that we need to “make a difference” in the world, in our families, in our communities, in our relationships – it goes on and on.  However, might we try on how it feels inside to compare “make a difference” to “make a contribution”.   For me, there is a edge to “make a difference” that is somehow filled with the expectation that we have to do something, and the need to make certain “that something” hits the target that we are aiming at.  It also somehow feels attached to attempting to gain favor or recognition for something – that may or may not be our natural authentic expression.  Feel a little pressure here?

Now there is nothing wrong with challenging ourselves, but how does it feel to simply “contribute” from the still (and sometimes very loud) voice inside that asks you to follow your heart and soul.  To bring that unique expression that is only yours out into the world.  There is a flow that happens  when we reach this place….and a knowing that even if we “fail” in bringing or manifesting our contribution out into the world, that at least we have taken our divine and true nature and given it a voice and a form from which to express.

As J.K. Rowling says in the above quote, when we stop pretending to be other than what and who we are, then we have the energy, passion and commitment to direct into the livelihood/artistic expression/relationships that matters most to us.  We set ourselves free when we contribute from this place of being….and it is here that we thrive.

There are two videos this week that I want to share with you.  The first is of an amazing woman by the name of Jeanne Dowell who is a first-time entrepreneur at the age of 80!  Merging her long-time experience as a yoga teacher, Jeanne, along with her 44 year old daughter, launches a new eco-friendly apparel business – The Green Buddha company.  Jeanne teaches us that it is never too late to contribute and that often, just naturally, that contribution does “make a difference”.

The Green Buddha-oomphtv.com

The second video is at the other end of the age spectrum and features an incredibly courageous, articulate, wise, intelligent and beautiful young woman giving a keynote talk on Martin Luther King Day in her high school auditorium.  Kayla’s contribution is saying YES to her fullest self – even when that may present challenges that she might not know how to handle.  Staying silent however, is not an option for this young woman….and her entire school learns a deep and valuable lesson about being authentic, even when it is terrifying and filled with the unknown.

Maria Carillo Highschool, Santa Rosa, California – Kayla comes out.

May we yield to the Divine nature that we are and trust in the direction that it leads us.

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:  BreathingSpaces

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Authenticity, Awareness, Courage, Creative Expression, Manifesting Your Dreams

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Reflections on Growth and Change

We have entered a New Year and a shift to increased light in each day.  Light to shed on the new possibilities and opportunities ever present as we walk the path of our lives.  It is the custom of many at the beginning of the year to make “resolutions” and be very committed to them for the first two months or so – then lose interest, or momentum, as time moves on.  I know – I’ve been there! But for the last two years I have chosen to do something different.  I have created vision boards from a place of openness and receptivity.  Last years focus was on “coming as you are” – in other words no hiding anything and fully expressing!

Vision Board 2010

This year I sat with two women friends on the first day of 2011 again creating vision boards, and taking part in ritual to shift each one of us into a receptive space of letting go, and opening to bringing in.  Part of that ritual included making a list of the perceived positive and negative events/experiences that happened over the last year that has just ended.  After sharing with each other we burned them in a ritual of letting go, and then proceeded to meditate together for 11 minutes (for 2011) before starting our creations.  Reflecting back on this time together a day later I find that ritual with other women feels like “coming home”.

 

Sitting down to start selecting images and words to remind of intentions around actions to be taken, energies to embody, and paths to explore,  it seemed more important to put the focus on one word for the entire year.  Every experience in 2011 would be informed by the energy and layers of that word.  My word was WEALTH – in all of its many meanings.

 

For some guidelines on choosing your word for the year go to Christine Kane’s – Your Word of the Year Discovery Tool at: http://christinekane.com/blog/a-free-gift-to-uplevel-your-2011/

In ending this post I want to say that I sometimes wonder about the  “shells” that we often encase ourselves within – patterns, beliefs,  and self imposed limitations – keeping us from expressing and being the fullness of who we are as women and unique beings.  I know that has been true for me.  Are we really “protecting” ourselves, or is it time to break through the shell and shine, show our light and our strength, and challenge the engrained and contracted self imposed boxes we sometimes place ourselves in.  The mere act of breaking the shell ignites the process of coming home!

 

I say in this first post of 2011 – what if you decided to break through the shell?

Rachel of Mandala Custom Homes (FB) posted a link to the blog of  Anthony Lawlor – author, muse, and architect.  I post it here for all of you to read the wise words he has written, and to witness the miracle of the determined life form to break from its shell.

dwellingherenow.blogspot.com

 

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

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Most Recent Post: Ignite – New Beginnings

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Authenticity, Awareness, Courage, Manifesting Your Dreams

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A Mantle For Inner Awareness

“A shawl or mantle – This is an insulating instrument, if not a portable sanctuary: a protective veil between you and the world. Such a cloak, if it is a well-used one, becomes saturated over time with your peace-filled devotion to Creator, Creation and Peace. Such a tapestry is effective during meditation and prayer, when sitting still in your home or nature sanctuary, when strolling, listening to uplifting music, and even sitting at your desk working. “

-Dr C. Forrest McDowell  www.onesanctuary.com

So, it is here that I introduce Kay Moates of On Slender Threads.   Kay, like many of us, went through a radical change and shift in her livelihood, as well as her inner creative awareness of what her next leap in life would be not that long ago.  I have the distinct honor of owning a mantle by Kay and use it daily to create my own sanctuary of inner peace and reflection.   The process that she goes through in order to create one of these mantles is a reflection of the depth of the shift that she made.  Kay was invited to write of the leap that she took from a dance world to one of reflective creation.  Below is her short story of the moments that took her through the passage and into creating On Slender Threads.  Go to her website to learn more!

A Gaggle of Leaps by Kay Moates

Last class taught, performance encored, stage struck, accoutrements neatly pack away . . . well, how about the passions, how about forty years of teaching deeper living through dance and movement . . . how do I fold them up and pack them away? How do I tell those images that dance in my head it’s time to stop, time to be done, over, kaput? “You’re hereby retired!”

No way would the images curtsy. “Fan those passion embers, Kay, fuel the flames!”

Ah, I remembered what I’d taught for years, ‘there’s more than one way to do the same thing’. How many times have I asked dancers to do that? “Well, now you do it, Kay!” So I descended into pondering. Gathering my favorite things into a new expression that kept shifting like a kaleidoscope. First one shape, then another, and another . . . Finally all the parts began to congeal.

What a re-defining this would require of me! Skills that were so different I was a stranger in a foreign land. In most cases I didn’t even know the vocabulary for framing questions. And so, the gaggle began. What, use words, write them down, but I’m a non-verbal specialist . . . leap. I must become competent with my Mac . . . leap, understand the internet and surf . . . leap, leap . . . join established internet sales venues . . . leap, purchase and learn a new camera . . . leap, take photos that give a virtual touch . . . leap, learn photoshop . . . leap, and leap yet again and again. Leaping is a playful game now.

Probably the biggest leap is yet to be landed. How does a contemplative who creates in Silence market Mindfulness Mantles via social media? Here goes. Are you watching?

Inhaling, bending knees, pushing off, air borne, straightening legs, softening joints, opening heart into full fall . . . arms spread wing wide . . .

To Find Kay at On Slender Threads please go to: 

http://www.OnSlenderThreads.com
http://www.facebook.com/OnSlenderThreadsWearableZenMoments

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:  www.BreathingSpaces.net

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Courage, Creative Expression, Manifesting Your Dreams

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If I Were Brave

May today I find peace within.

Green Tara

May I trust my highest power
that I am exactly where I am meant to be.
May I not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May I use those gifts that I have received
and pass on the love that has been given to me.
May I be content knowing that I am a child of God.
May this Presence settle into my bones,
and allow my soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.

– St Teresa of Avila (16th Century Spanish Saint)

It is with the quote above that I start this post on being brave and courageous in your life.  I too, like so many of you, stand on the precipice.  As I stand here I remember that you are here with me as well, but that somehow doesn’t stop the thought – Gee, you would think that it would be easier by now since I have been here so many times before.

Perhaps that is the definition of a life well lived….you stand here many, many times and have the opportunity to create your own unique leaping dance trusting that even if you fall on your face….. there will be a “lifting up” that inspires you to leap yet again.

As Chameli Ardah states on her Awakening Women blog “the Green Tara above embodies the fearless and protective aspect of the feminine, but it is not courage which resists fear. If you think of fear and courage as two ends of a spectrum, we need to be willing to move through the whole range”.    This means that standing in the fear is part of this leap process.

Thus easy isn’t quite the word that defines this passage.  I have learned that when we are seeking alignment with our passions and the Divine plan for our life, it is then that we consider taking those leaps and making those choices that bring us into the discovery of what that still small voice has been saying to us for oh so long.

It is here that faith and trust in the wholeness of who we are comes into play.  It is also here that we remember who we really are….and say YES!  Yes, to the healing, yes to one more day to love and be loved, yes to starting over again one more time, yes to the creativity that sometimes rocks us with its insistence that it be brought out into the world, yes to the risk of finding more of who we are, yes to being vulnerable, being “seen” and surrendering the resistance, yes to giving back from a full place with every fiber of our being.

It can come in big leaps, but also can come in stages like the walking of a labyrinth where each step brings you closer to the edge of discovery…and then to the heart of the matter.  The clues are all around us right now.  All we need to do is be still and listen carefully.  The answer is always there.

As you watch this video by Jana Stanfield remember that you are also one of these women that reached deeply inside, found her strength and courage, was not afraid to ask for support as needed, and leapt into Herself, settling into this Presence deep within  your bones.  Rock on!

Thank you to Jana Stanfield and the sponsorship of Robin Rice (The Awesome Women Hub)  and Randy Grossman  (Randy Grossmans Amazing Music Portal)
for birthing this project.

If I Were Brave – by Jana Stanfield

 

Other Blogs by Gaye Abbott:  www.BreathingSpaces.net

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Awareness, Courage, Creative Expression, Manifesting Your Dreams

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Remember Who You Are – Align With Your Creative Source

A few weeks ago now, through a series of actions that I took in alignment with feelings that I wanted to express – a beautiful, passionate voiced being came into my life by the name of Angelica.  You will find that post here on this blog with a video of Angelica bringing her gift of singing into a cathedral which she filled with the beauty of her voice and her presence.

I do believe that when we as women come in touch with our own creative source and align with that by bringing it out into the world, we love others into alignment.  Angelica is a beautiful example of that for she has touched me with her story and her creative gifts – and through that has reminded me of my own creations that await to be passionately launched into flight.

Below you will find a chapter from her book which comes with her CD – Remember Who You Are. I encourage each one of you to go to her website below and appreciate that you too are even now “remembering who you are” through daily aligning with your creative source, opening to possibility, and taking action steps from that place.  You are not alone….

Deep gratitude and appreciation to Angelica who has touched my life with her voice and her being.  Road trip to Canada anyone??

******************************

Remember Who You Are
- The Story Behind The Song –
by Angelica Ganea-Mileto

www.iamAngelica.com

My Journey
When I first came to Canada, what caught my attention was the rich palette of wonderful opportunities this country had to offer: jobs, colleges where one could study at any age, food in abundance, heat in the winter, air conditioning in the summer, beautifully paved streets, the possibility of choosing a car and a house based on your income… There were literally hundreds of things that made me feel so blessed the moment I made this country my new home. However, along with all that, there was a very tiny question beginning to take root in my mind: “Why wasn’t I born here?”

Why did I have to be born in a country where the main source of heat in the winter was the gas-cooking stove so we had to go to sleep wearing sweaters, mittens, and hats? Why did I have to be born in a country where, to provide milk for their children, mothers had to wait in line outside the grocery store at four o’clock in the morning regardless of the weather, a country where bread, oil, flour, and meat were rationed?

Why did I have to be born in a country where television programs were broadcast for only two hours a day, where it was normal to be stuck in the elevator for hours due to the government disconnecting the electricity for economic reasons, where the grocery stores carried bananas, oranges and raisins only at Christmas? Why wasn’t I born here instead, and able to have the abundance Canada offered?

Why did I have to be born in a communist country and be restricted and fearful as a child, having to monitor my words very carefully because my parents could be put in jail or even go “missing” if I misspoke? Why wasn’t I born here instead and able to feel the freedom of not being afraid?
Why did I have to be born in a country where for years, the songs we had sung as children were imposed upon us? Why wasn’t I born in Canada and able to blossom as a singer in the way I believed I could? Instead, I found myself here as an adult, feeling fearful about the direction I wanted to take, not even knowing the language, looking to take the subway train from “Subway,” the sandwich place, and feeling so silly about it later…

Without realizing it, I slowly started to resent not only where I had come from, but also where I was in the present. My determination to pursue my career in Canada was always very strong— the thought of succeeding was what actually kept me going— but at the same time I felt overwhelmed by the length of the process. It felt as if I had been born all over again, only this time already grown-up and having to bury deep inside almost everything I’d ever known, while trying to find a way to adjust to something that felt very much alien. And even though in the back of my mind I always knew that the scenarios of both my past and my present were not the most unfortunate conditions that exist on this planet, I was still hanging on to the question, “Why?”
Little did I know that by trying to find the answer to that question I was fighting a futile battle, keeping myself prisoner in a bubble of illusion- the illusion that I was not in charge of my own life. And by doing so, I could never find the answer to a yet deeper question, the answer that would give me the peace I was actually looking for: “Why do things happen a certain way?”

I don’t have all the answers, and I love the fact that I don’t, simply because exploring life one step at a time is beautiful. One thing I’m sure of, however, is that my words and music are rooted in the perspective that I hold due to living my life’s experiences, and that I know to be my truth. This is what my words and music are about. They are about the moment I let myself peek through my own little box and dared to be open to new possibilities. They are about the moment I felt as if a window had just opened and the freshest smell of crisp morning air touched my face and quickly filled my whole body with boundless freedom… After years of being stuck in the vicious circle of thinking that my life wasn’t going anywhere it finally occurred to me: does it really matter where we are at the moment of birth? Does it really matter where we are at any point in our life?

Leaving the judgment behind, I finally realized how my life up until that point had nothing to do with the direction my future would take. The past remains the past; it cannot be changed, as hard as it may be to accept this, but what I can change is the direction my life is going. And I can do that by using one of the most valuable tools available to me at any moment in time: the freedom of choosing my own perspective.

The perspective we choose is what contributes to creating our moods and our emotional responses which in turn energize our experiences, carving out what we call our destiny with undeniable precision. I can choose to have a negative perspective and fall into the trap of feeling like a victim, kneeling with my arms raised up to the sky, asking eternally “Why?” Or I can choose to change how I am viewing the present; acknowledge the blessing of simply being born. Being born, therefore having the opportunity to feel empowered by my own desire, while holding on to the knowing that it’s up to me to make it true.

Looking back at the conditions in my native country while holding no judgment, gives me now an incredible feeling of liberation. The conditions of life were harsh indeed, but that’s all we knew. We had no model by which to compare them, since we didn’t have access to the world outside our borders. So at the time, the situation didn’t feel as negative as it felt when I was able to compare it with Canada, one of the best countries in the world!

Even though our leader was keeping himself occupied with creating and applying more restrictions, we still shared love with our family and friends, found reasons to laugh and enjoy each other’s company; we still had beautiful bedtime stories and sang lullabies to our children. There was nothing that could make us lose sight of our inner freedom, nothing that could make us lose our hope. I remember when I was a child, there was absolutely no way anybody could pull me out of my imaginary world where every single moment was sparkling with desire and sweet anticipation of a beautiful future; my imaginary world where anything was possible.
Then I looked back upon the journey I had undertaken from the moment I made Canada my new home, and even though nothing is ever really wrong with anything, I wished that I hadn’t let myself feel so much negative emotion. I wished that I hadn’t allowed myself to be caught up in what I believed was my reality and react in ways that had actually brought upon me even more negative emotions…

Immigrating is not easy for anybody; the challenges are tangible and can be painful, especially if you are leaving a career behind, moving to a country where you don’t know the language, and having to go to school in order to get a job. However, it’s a process that gave me the opportunity to explore life in a much different way. It helped me realize the power in the simplicity of making a clear choice: the choice between moving along with the process or resist it; the choice between living with peace or living with pain and resentment…

I chose to feel better. I chose to look at challenges with appreciation and accept the idea that immigrating to such a beautiful country was equal to having a second chance at life. I chose to recognize the huge potential of being able to use the resources this beautiful country has to offer as an opportunity to become much stronger and much more than I had ever been before.

Changing my perspective was one of the most fulfilling and rewarding feelings I’d ever had up until that point. Looking at my past and my present through different eyes, forgiving everything and everybody that I thought were responsible for my struggles, helped me find the peace of mind I so needed in order to be able to look forward with courage and anticipation.

Once I let go of the weight of the judgment, my mind became clearer. And as I was learning about the power of thought, the power of intention and visualization, I realized something that stopped me in my tracks and put a smile of astonishment on my face… I remembered the very desire I had as a child, the beautiful future I kept living in my mind every single night as I was going to sleep, year after year. It was that strong, innocent desire that had paved the path for moving to a country that provided all the resources necessary to fulfill my dream. It took me thirteen years to realize that what I was resenting was my opportunity to fulfill my dream. It took me thirteen years to realize that what I was resenting was my process of becoming.

I would have never known what deep passion and true appreciation really felt like if it weren’t for the times I had to give up the only thing that defined me. I’ve learned that music is truly my identity, and that life lived without following my passion is a life filled with unanswered questions. But mostly, I’ve learned that we all are pure spirit, joyful, perfect beings. Therefore, we all have the ability to get in touch with our divine Self and, while living life from that standpoint, inspire others to have the courage to reach for their own dreams.

I am not going to stay here and tell you “anything is possible,” but what I am going to tell you is this: never give up on yourself. No matter where you are on this planet, no matter the conditions around you, it can always get better if you choose it to be better. It can always get better if you choose to adopt a positive perspective and appreciate everything that makes up your moment of now. It can always get better if you choose to hold on to the thought of future accomplishments instead of the thought of not wanting to be where you are. It can always get better if you focus on the clear picture of what you want to achieve and stay strong in your decision to do what makes you feel good. It can always get better if you stay loyal to the truth inside, if you follow your heart. Only then are limiting boundaries and man-made rules broken; only then does “anything is possible” become more than just words, as you will feel their meaning and naturally live it.

Don’t question your ability to reach heights you’ve never even imagined, and certainly don’t let the question “How am I going to do it?” shadow your desire. The most beautiful, most rewarding part of listening to your heart is that you need not worry about how it will happen. You need not worry about the steps you must take toward materializing your desire. The Universe will send everything you need in order for you to accomplish what you came here to do. The right circumstances, the right people, the right words will undoubtedly make their way toward you if you trust the process and look for the beauty and the majestic purpose in everything. I know that, now…
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Busting Loose From The Aging Game

72 year old Ernestine tells it like it is in this video!  At this writing I believe that she is now 73 years old and still going strong.  This didn’t happen overnight for her.  What it took was daily commitment to her health and fitness, and an inner faith that she could change her life for the better…and in turn change many other women’s lives as well.

A new friend and I had breakfast this morning and we were discussing the manner in which our generation is aging.  Some of you may have read Busting Loose From The Money Game by Robert Scheinfeld.  Well, my friend Lorraine came up with Busting Loose From the Aging Game. In other words, we get to choose and create how we play the aging game and what kind of “rules” we want to live by.  What fun!!

For example, Ernestine started out when she was 56 years old.  Going shopping for bathing suits with her sister for a pool party they were invited to, both of them realized that they definitely wanted to look a little bit different than what they saw in the mirror.  They were taking on the aging game of their generation, and both decided to invent a new one!

Beginning with an aerobics class, they both started to feel better and look better.  It wasn’t however, until Ernestine’s sister died suddenly of an brain aneurysm, that Ernestine decided to commit to much more than she had been doing to work through the grief over her sister’s passing.  Now 17 years later, at age 73, she runs 80 miles a week, lifts weights most days, can bench press 150 pounds, has completed 8 marathons, and teaches other women how to believe in themselves, find health, vitality and empowerment, and create a different game for aging. 

If we create our reality, and I believe that we do, then what kind of aging game would you like to create?? It will be uniquely your own…so ready, start, GO!!

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The “Divine Shove”


Standing in the group shower of my gym today after a weight training session, I almost lost all sense of propriety as I imagined all 4 other women and myself breaking out in a gospel song with harmonizing and all, stark naked, shampoo in our hair, and sounding like angels from heaven – well, soulful, grounded angels that is!  Our name, of course, would be Divine Soulful Naked Babes.

It is this kind of imaginative play that seems to be striking my fancy quite often these days.  Why, one might ask?  I do believe that when a person realizes that she/he is the direct creator of their life, a freedom of sorts comes in that enhances the innate imagination and dreaming potential.  This potential doesn’t seem to have an off and on switch – let’s just say you can’t control it!  Thank God!

Also in these times of direct conscious creation we can be given what I call a “Divine Shove”.  This very sacred and creative push is directly powered by, and on behalf of, YOU expressing fully in the world.  This is in place of hanging out in resistance and the illusions of fear and doubt which some might call  “stuck” or “paralyzed”.  I call it opportunity beckoning.

When this “Shove” comes it is like a death of sorts where we step out of our old ways of creating (patterns and limiting beliefs) directly into “coming as you really are”.  I have written about this before, but now it has an additional depth to it that may call to what you may be up against in your own life. Connecting with a friend of mine in Ireland I explained it is like riding in a roller coaster – which I really don’t like thank you very much – and realizing that the only thing you can do is put your hands in the air and yell a little (or a lot) and let go!

This transition time may seem like living in two worlds – and you might wonder if a bit of schizophrenia is taking hold.  Here is an example.  I thrive in the worlds of writing and creation, as well as motivating and empowering.  I also work in a scientific world where everything must be exact – no room for error – rigid.  My “Divine Shove” this week came within the medical world, which for a long time now has not been in alignment with my heart, soul, or desires.  This “Shove” came in the disguise of “corrective action” for not living up to set standards by a technical error that I made.  No details are necessary here, but let’s just say that the system that meted out this “punishment”, which is “you will be terminated if you do it again”, was the push that I needed to co-create my life in alignment with my passions.  This had already been initiated, but a speeding up process was definitely under way!

Now, one could be a victim of circumstances that happen, or one can take the immense gifts of this “Divine Shove” and run with it knowing full well that you are the Master Creator.  I took the latter choice, but not without some moments of panic I must admit.  Coming home from that day at work, however,  I decided to positively brain storm about everything that I love to do and which can provide a flow of income for me.  Every possible idea that I could think of was written down.  Thoughts were not on the “corrective action” but were on stepping out into my creativity and aliveness.  I went to sleep that night filled with possibility.

Now,  I would like to say that there was no repercussion from what happened at my day job, but there is, and that is part of the gift.  I get to watch myself feel doubt in my abilities where before I never even thought about my competency and skill in this area.  How to work with this until I can move completely into the life of my dreams and vision is a task that is directly in front of me.  On the other hand the same day that the “corrective action” took place I came home to find that I was sent the draft of a book to “take a look at and see what I thought”.  This turns out to be a possibility to co-create with someone I greatly admire.

Are you ready for a “Divine Shove”?  Just remember it has many disguises.  I am beginning to love roller coaster rides!

Gaye Abbott     

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