The Community

We're living during challenging and unprecedented times. Since the start of 2020, there have been catastrophic events happening all over the world. There are always scary and negative events occurring everywhere, but this year has been one of the craziest years, if not the craziest. What do you do when you feel lost? Where do you turn when you're unsure of what to do next? How do you create peace among chaos? I've learned that when I need a positive shift in mindset, I have to begin by looking within. Our internal worlds make up our external worlds. If I create a higher vibration of love for myself, I spread that love to others. It comes back to how I want to view the world and how I want to feel. Once you're aware of the emotions that you want to experience, you can work toward cultivating that feeling tone throughout your thoughts, words and actions - creating the world that you want to live in. How do you get there? For me, I begin most days with ten to twenty minutes of meditation and journaling. I use Insight Timer for free guided meditations and then jot down any thoughts or feelings after the meditaton is over. I also use my journal to map out my day and life. I create positive affirmations about myself and my dreams. I write about my dreams as if they already happened. I use the time in the morning before work to dream and create intentions for how I want to live. For example, I'll write: I am a clear channel of love and light. I am well guided both day and night. I am a NYT Bestselling author. My book is published and out into the world. I am happy, peaceful, confident, and creative. All is well in my world. Your list of affirmations would obviously be different than mine, but writing your desires as if they already exist is a really powerful tool to start your day with. If you can make this a habit every single day, you'll continuously be bringing yourself into a space of love and peace. This will then become your natural way of being and living. When you can live in this way, life doesn't seem as hard or troublesome, because you are the creator of your world. You are the one who's in control of how you perceive life and how you respond to it. For this week's Weekly Awareness, can you begin each day with at least five to ten minutes of meditation? Can you journal for another five to ten minutes about anything that arose from your practice? Can you write down your goals, desires and dreams as if they already happened? Can you genuinely feel excited about your life? Let me know how this challenge is going for you. Is it hard at first to close your eyes, become silent and still? What comes up for you during this space? Are you able to create the type of day you want to experience? What are you learning from this? Please share anything that you're experiencing with this week's new challenge! I love to hear from you!

In a world where we're conditioned to focus on the negative and lack, today I'm simply choosing joy. Here's a list of all that I've grown to love about quarantine so far: I love the slow and steady rise of morning; the moments when I open my eyes and remember there's no rush for me to dive into, no place for me to be, but the gift of time to ease into my day. I love the first scent of coffee brewing, the lingering taste on my lips while opening a book I always wished I had more time for before life so drastically changed. I love the birds singing in their choir outside, how I notice the beauty in their song, the freedom in their expression and how I too have a choice of what song I will sing. I love the peace that comes from solitude. I look around my home and realize how lucky I am to have everything be just as it is now: my plants soaking up the sun, the breeze coming in through the kitchen window, frames filled with memories of loved ones, art I've bought over the years that make this space my own, and the sounds of nature outside, beckoning me to mirror its patience. I love how I've reconnected with family and friends that I don't see or talk to that often, but through this isolation, have grown closer to even if through a screen. I love how I'm met with both the things I've taken for granted and all that I no longer want in my life. How amazing it is to have this time to pause and reflect on how I want to live my life going forward. I love that I realize how comfortable I am in my own skin and how I treasure the moments shared with only myself. This makes me want to deepen my connection to who I truly am and who I desire to become. I love that life will never be the same after this has passed and how that's a good thing. We all needed a break from the constant doing, the perpetual force forward with no awareness of the present. We are being awakened, we are being renewed, we are ascending into our highest selves. I love that I see things more clearly now, how I know the true value of time and how I've often squandered it by indulging in mindless tasks, and yet, it is through that squandering that I've learned how precious each moment is. I love that I can return to projects I always said I didn't have the time for but always wished I did. I now have time and I will no longer take it for granted. I love that every day rolls into the next somewhat feeling the same, but not the way a workweek felt before, rather there's more freedom in my choices despite the absence of places to go to. I've discovered that since there's essentially no real place or thing to escape into, there's unlimited potential when I turn within. I love that when the media can thrive on feeding fear to its viewers that I will forever choose to remain in the light, to not be led astray into darkened alleyways and places that offer no refuge, rather the refuge I seek is forever within. I love that I'm always choosing to stay here, in my own vibration of love, wholeness, serenity, and peace. I am always the home I can return to. I love that I will forever share this space I believe in, regardless of how others perceive me to be, for I know that my truth forever lights the path I walk upon. I love the gift of simply being. For I will just be. What are some of the things that you've grown to love or appreciate during this new time of your life? How can shifting your focus onto the opportunities that are forever present change your experience of quarantine? How can this perspective help others around you?

My latest meditation was created to remind you that all is always well and that you are the peace you are seeking. Listen to this before getting out of bed, before going to sleep or really any time you need to bring yourself back into the present and cultivate emotions that support you rather than bring you down. You are in control of how you feel; you are the creator of your life. I create these weekly reflective writing worksheets for my female mastermind and accountability group, A Night for Dreamers . They're meant to offer you the time and space to become present with yourself, to reflect on your thoughts and actions, to take a breath and pause and see how you truly feel about something, and to discover the next best steps moving forward. I hope they support you during these challenging times and inspire you to still choose love over fear, light over dark and gratitude over lack. Sending love <3