September 2010

Hello Everyone!

I am getting a lot of calls and questions pertaining to… “Will this ever change?”  Well, yes, and, no.  Life is truly an odyssey –  a wonderful, exciting, maddening, frustrating, emotional, and beautiful journey.  So, no – the emotional highs and lows, the shadow and light, guiding and illuminating our paths, will not change.  What will change is this:  As you travel,

and work with,  and through,  the obstacles of your chosen path(s)  –  the intensity with which you experience most obstacles; the way in which you address, and deal with, any given issue;

and the way in which it will impact you, will definitely change.  You are on your spiritual, emotional path.  As you have traveled along it, you have learned new and effective ways to address difficult situations.  People appear along the way to help, in a variety of ways, if you allow it.  Just remember to use discernment, and trust your heart and spirit.

We are almost at the end of Mercury Retrograde (it ends September 12th – for more information on Mercury Retrograde, and it’s effects, please visit Susan Miller’s website –

the links are below).  During this retrograde, old scars, patterns, and issues have revisited many.  This allows you to re-examine them, perhaps addressing some aspect that had previously been overlooked, or unable to be dealt with.  This is a good thing, however uncomfortable it may be.  It is timely.  Hold up your light.  Explore.  And deal with that which was not previously dealt with.  It is always more frightening to imagine what is in the dark, than to shine the light on it, and see who or what you are really dealing with.  You are safe, and you can do it.  Don’t forget that you are not the person that you were when the issue or situation first occurred, or came into your conscious awareness.  Remember that this is your odyssey, not someone else’s.  The journey is never over – it is about what piece of it you want to deal with today.  So, enjoy it, and choose wisely.  And if you make  a mistake – forgive yourself, learn from it, and smile.  Everyone makes mistakes – all the time.

Below you will find a variety of articles, writings, videos, links, and recommended books/authors that I thought were interesting and/or useful.  As always, I am available to support you with your journey, and your well-being,  in any way I can.  Please don’t hesitate to contact me.   Enjoy…

Love, Light & Blessings to You,

Stacey Osder
‘Omnasztra’

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Susan Miller’s Website:

has Mercury Retrograde Information, and more: 

Susan Miller’s  www.astrologyzone.com current trends

http://www.astrologyzone.com/forecasts/trends.html

Mercury Madness

http://www.astrologyzone.com/forecasts/mercury.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

This month’s Whole Person Magazine, has a good article about the disappearance of honeybees.  You can visit  www.vanishingbees.com   to find out more information about this phenomenon, and to see the trailer of the documentary film featured in the article.  A client also  sent me the YouTube video below (which I have included for your convenience).  It is worth watching, and learning about.

The Vanishing of the Bees

This is a trailer for the documentary feature film – The Vanishing of the Bees.. For more information or to help support the making of this film visit www.vanishingbees.com.

(In case the video above does not work – the link is:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XL-A8Apn1_s    )

 

 

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Following are some videos that, in the words of a friend of mine, are wonderful, and actually mean something! :

http://personalgrowthcourses.net/video/what_matters_w_mitchell

http://personalgrowthcourses.net/video/challenge_day


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How To Forgive :

Rather than hurt ourselves with bitterness, the best course of action is to simply forgive.  Forgiveness is the ultimate reset button.  Sadly, millions of people struggle with forgiveness, but it is because they don’t understand how to forgive.

The first thing you have to understand about forgiveness is that it has nothing to do with your emotions.  You may feel the emotional pain of what that other person did to you till the day you die – it has nothing to do with forgiveness.

Second, forgiveness has nothing to do with erasing your memory.  You may remember what that person did to you till the day you die.  Forgiveness is simply this: a decision to let it go.  The Greek word that translates to “forgiveness” is “aphieemi,”  literally “to send off,” “to release,” or “to let go.”  This means forgiveness is the act of sending away incidents that cause offense to brew in us.  It means we can’t keep focusing on the wrong done to us.  Forgiveness is an act.  This is an example of forgiveness: “I forgive you.  I will never use it against you in the future.  I will never speak of it again to you or anyone else.”

When you forgive, you decide to release the person from his or her guilt, period.  You may remember the offense repeatedly at first.  That’s okay.  The commitment to forgive a person is a commitment to “send away” the incident every time it reappears in your mind. 

Once the apostle Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?”  Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”

That’s 490 times.

Luke, in his Gospel, adds the phrase “a day.”  Imagine forgiving the same person 490 times a day!  Truth is, it is pretty easy to get consumed by someone’s offense.  When a person does something that really hurts you, you will naturally think about it over and over again.  Practicing the principle of forgiving someone 490 times a day means every time you think about what that person did to you, you prayerfully give it to God.  The choice to forgive means we keep forgiving.  Over time you will find the incident losing strength.

You must also remember that forgiveness has more to do with your tongue than your head or your heart.  If you’re still talking about what that person did to you, you haven’t forgiven him or her.  You need to hush.  You need to let it go.  The good news is, God will help you do this.”

Excerpt from “Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage”   (p. 271-273)

by Mark  Gungor

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LIKABLE  LINKS:

Spirituality & Health Magazine | The Soul/Body Connection:
www.spiritualityhealth.com

The online Self Improvement Community:    www.selfgrowth.com

International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers:  www.grandmotherscouncil.org

Care2 Make a Difference – Causes & News for people passionate about animal welfare, human rights, and the environment. Also has e-cards. :   www.care2.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

RECOMMENDED READINGS :

Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow”   by Elizabeth Lesser

    Description:   During times of transition, amid everyday stress, and even when we face seemingly insurmountable adversity, life offers us a choice: to turn away from change or to embrace it; to shut down or to be broken open and transformed. In the more than twenty-five years since she cofounded the Omega Institute now the world s largest personal-growth and spiritual retreat center Elizabeth Lesser has been an intimate witness to the ways in which human beings deal with change, loss, and difficulty. She herself has struggled to submit to what she calls the Phoenix Process allowing herself to be broken open in order to rise like the mythical bird.

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

You Are That” by Gangaji

    Description:  The lives of thousands of people have been influenced by Gangaji’s teachings. You Are That is a collection of her classic offerings, first shared more than a decade ago and now updated to include both original volumes, a new introduction, rare photographs, and new insights. This exquisite special edition delves into natural inquiries about our existence, including the nature of mind, how to expose the core of suffering, and how to overcome the last obstacle of self-doubt.

    Eloquent and direct, Gangaji guides practitioners of all backgrounds through an examination into the self that often leads to unexpected glimpses of awakening. “This is a moment of reckoning,” she teaches.   “Do not take this moment casually or trivially. Recognize that for whatever reason, you are aware of the possibility of realizing the truth of yourself as limitless consciousness-you are that!”

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ask and It Is Given: Learning to Manifest Your Desires” by Esther & Jerry Hicks

    Description:  This fascinating book by Esther and Jerry Hicks, which presents the teachings of the nonphysical entity Abraham, will help you learn how to manifest your desires so that you’re living the joyous and fulfilling life you deserve. As you read, you’ll come to understand how your relationships, health issues, finances, career concerns, and more are influenced by the Universal laws that govern your time-space-reality – and you’ll discover powerful processes that will help you go with the positive flow of life. It’s your birthright to live a life filled with everything that is good – and this book will show you how to make it so in every way!

    According to Abraham, the reason so many of us feel frustrated, is that we have difficulty knowing how to ask and receive whatever we want to be, do or have.   This book offers an excellent, in-depth discussion on how to change one’s life by matching the vibrational energy of one’s desires–taking the power of positive thinking to a whole new level.

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace… One School at a Time” by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin

    Description: One day in 1993, high up in the world’s most inhospitable mountains, Greg Mortenson wandered lost and alone, broken in body and spirit, after a failed attempt to climb K2, the world’s deadliest peak. When the people of an impoverished village in Pakistan’s Karakoram Himalaya took him in and nursed him back to health, Mortenson made an impulsive promise: He would return one day and build them a school. Although he was a homeless “climbing bum” living out of his aging Buick in Berkeley, California, Mortenson sold what few possessions he had to launch one of the most remarkable humanitarian campaigns of our time.” “Three Cups of Tea traces Mortenson’s decade-long odyssey to build schools, especially for girls, throughout the region that gave birth to the Taliban and sanctuary to Al Qaeda. While he wages war with the root causes of terrorism – poverty and ignorance – by providing both girls and boys with a balanced, nonextremist education. Mortenson must survive a kidnapping, fatwas issued by enraged mullahs, death threats from Americans who consider him a traitor, and wrenching separations from his family.” Today, as the director of the Central Asia Institute, Mortenson has built fifty-five schools serving Pakistan and Afghanistan’s poorest communities. And as this real-life Indiana Jones from Montana crisscrosses the Himalaya and the Hindu Kush fighting to keep these schools functioning, he provides not only hope to tens of thousands of children, but living proof that one passionately dedicated person truly can change the world.

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows     

    Description:   “I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.” January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb….    As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends–and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society–born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island–boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.  Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s…

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

RECOMMENDED AUTHORS:   

Sanaya Roman,  Florence Scovel Shinn, Thich Nhat Hanh, Joseph Campbell.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 The Story of the Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.
One day a small opening appeared.
He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours
as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole.
Then it stopped, as if it couldn’t go further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly.
He took a pair of scissors and
snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon.
The butterfly emerged easily but
it had a swollen body and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch it,
expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge
and expand enough to support the body,
Neither happened!
In fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life
crawling around.
It was never able to fly.

What the man in his kindness
and haste did not understand:
The restricting cocoon and the struggle
required by the butterfly to get through the opening
was a way of forcing the fluid from the body
into the wings so that it would be ready
for flight once that was achieved.

Sometimes struggles are exactly
what we need in our lives.
Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us.
We will not be as strong as we could have been
and we would never fly.

So have a nice day and struggle a little and teach well.

                                                            – Author Unknown

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

41 + = 47