Wednesday 29 December 2010

Surrendering To The Flow Of Life

A strong theme emerged after an inspirational and enlightening session with a dear friend and client on Christmas Eve. The theme was surrender, and it seemed clear that there is a need for all of us to surrender to the flow of life much more.

This is not about giving up or feeling like a victim, but it is more about swimming with the current rather than against it. Often our minds and our hearts are in conflict about the decisions, choices and options available to us. We can become paralysed in indecision and fear if we do not step back (surrender) to regain our perspectives.

It seems that part of the condition of being human is an innate need to understand and to search for answers, patterns and solutions. Perhaps we are scared of the unknown, of the chaos that surrounds us? Perhaps we just need and want everything to make perfect sense.

Yet, we know that we cannot possibly make sense of everything, we cannot understand the true depth and power of the Universe. Whilst each of us contain the Universe within; at the same time, we are just a tiny cluster of atoms amongst infinity.

Our struggle to understand, to know, to control can leave us fighting upstream, battling the current. If we can surrender more to the process, we will begin to realise that the key to inner knowing is in going with the flow. Of course, we will always have moments of battling upstream and we will always have times of self-doubt, but if we can trust the process of life more, we will see that, on the whole, we can travel with the current and the current will take us to where we need to go.

This is, in many ways, about having faith and trust. It is about bypassing our inner critics and allowing ourselves to live up to our full potential. It is also about, not becoming paralysed in indecision, and allowing stagnancy and decay to develop on all levels of our Being through inaction or avoidance.

Surrendering to the flow is about life enrichment, personal empowerment, inspiration and joy. It is about taking the knocks with the smooth. Surrendering is about overcoming challenges and maintaining balance with a need to stop doubting and undermining ourselves.

As we step into 2011, there is a need now to ‘go with the flow’, to re-connect to the core of our Beings and to ‘touch’ the rainbow within. The coming year is a time for joy, abundance, manifestation and freedom. All of these are within our reach now, it is all a matter of perspective and belief...

Saturday 25 December 2010

Reflections On The Spirit of Christmas

I always like to take a little time out to write over Christmas. I also like to take the time to send out healing to one and all (humans, animals, plants, the seas, the earth, the heavens etc).

In many ways, the Christmas celebrated today by so many is a commercial and physical over-indulgence. The Christmas spirit seems more about indulgence in spirit of the alcoholic kind than it does a spiritual celebration.

I am not Christian, and for me the Winter Solstice holds more personal and spiritual significance. Yet most of the celebrations over Christmas come from ‘pagan’ solstice celebrations from the Christmas Tree, the Yule log, feasts and present giving. It has always been a time of coming together to celebrate life and to feel blessed for all we have. I therefore have no qualms about getting together with family and friends over the Christmas period.

I also like to spend time alone in reflection and contemplation for my path ahead. It is a time of deep soul-searching and self-honesty. It is a time to re-prioritise and to re-focus on dreams and goals.

2011 looks set to be another year of cosmic highs and lows, twists and turns. As the roller coaster continues through to 2012 and beyond, there is a sense of a ‘quickening’ of subtle (and not so subtle) shifts within and around us.

The coming year seems to be a time of liberation, manifestation and peace. They all fit together like three parts of an interlinked and entwined puzzle. We need all three for balance, and one in excess can lead to an imbalance in the other two. So, it is important that we strive for balance and harmony in all aspects of our lives.

We can also expect a need to stop clinging onto the Light, and instead know that true balance comes from Dark and Light. One is not bad and the other good, they are both of equal importance in our lives. To know Darkness is to see Truth.

The Light is not the sole source of the Divine, for we live in a polarised Universe. With day comes night, with Yin comes Yang, with dark comes light, with love comes pain. In many ways, as the core of the Universe contains ‘All there is’ it must therefore, by a process of deduction, be a neutral force. So to strive for a balance of Dark and Light is to seek out accord and harmony.

There is a strong sense that each of us is stepping back into the driving seats of our lives now. Stepping back into the power and Truth is empowering and enlightening, and whilst a little daunting, will ultimately help us to confidently stroll along the path ahead...

More on this soon!

So, my festive wish as always:

All I want for Christmas is for everyone's hearts to be filled with love and joy. I simply ask that we all come together to celebrate the true Spirit of Christmas - love.

Tuesday 21 December 2010

Happy Winter Solstice! From my window, it is certainly wintry and white outside!

Today also marked a lunar eclipse, which was visible from parts of the UK. So, today is a special day for reflection and for honouring all of the gifts and blessings we have in life.

Love to you all.

Sarah
x

Tuesday 14 December 2010

Movers & Shakers

I was channel hopping the other night, and I caught a scene from Ugly Betty. It was about Betty’s braces, but it applies to just about anything in life that challenges us.

Betty was talking about finally removing her braces and how it will affect her life: ‘What if nothing changes? Then I’ll have nothing to blame’.

Her sister replied: ‘You are who you are, the sooner you accept that, the happier you will be’.

Simple as that.

Its’ strange how just a few words from a seemingly innocuous TV programme could have such a big impact.

We all have challenges in life; some we can overcome, but some we have to endure. Yet it is how we choose to see these challenges that help determine our lives. We can give up and walk away in defeat (nothing wrong with this at all), or we can battle on, determined to succeed against all the odds (a tiring, but rewarding experience, if we reach the finish line).

Yet, these words resonate at a much deeper level. The planets have been pushing each of us towards more personal accountability and responsibility in life. We have been asked by the Cosmos to take control of our lives, to make difficult choices and to honour our gifts.

Of course, when we have challenges in life, so many of us do what Betty did; we blame the challenge or the issue. Looking beyond this though, it seems clear that we need to stop blaming anyone or anything, and instead choose to re-take our personal power and begin to truly accept ourselves as we are (warts and all – figuratively speaking!).

Most of us have aspects of our Selves that we are not happy with, yet does that one aspect truly shape the whole of our lives? When we move to a place beyond logic, we can begin to see that nothing should prevent us from Being true to our Selves.

Coming towards the end of a cosmically spectacular and busy year, it seems clear that the need to accept ourselves has reached such a deep level that it is even flowing through on the TV!

It is time now to honour ourselves, to let go of blame, to let go of shame and to love ourselves unconditionally. Life does not always go to plan, but we need to accept the challenges with the smoother times, and we need to stop pinning our hopes on fixing that ‘one thing’ in life that is stopping us from being our Selves.

Instead we need to accept (this is not the same as giving up!) and to realise that we do not have to wait until everything in our lives is ‘fixed’ or hunky-dory, but we can make that decision to start living immediately. Indeed if we do choose to wait, then it is likely to be a very long wait, as there is always something on our personal ‘fix lists’. Life is for living, not for hanging about thinking about living when the grass finally decides to get greener on the other side.

So, get out that grass feed, and feed the grass under your feet now! Embrace life and honour your Self.

If you decide to wait and still nothing changes, then maybe there is nothing to blame after all, maybe there is something within you stopping you or holding you back? So, why waste time waiting about? Why not face up to this now, and get the inevitable tough personal questioning over and done with?!

Burying one’s head in the sand can only work for so long, if we truly want to honour and accept ourselves; then there is no time like the present...

Monday 13 December 2010

Stargazing

If we have a clear sky tonight, check out the Geminid Meteor Shower. The plethora of shooting stars will bring magic to us all! The meteors will peak over the UK at about 11am Tuesday, but in dark skies, meteors may be seen tonight or tomorrow night...

Happy Stargazing!

Friday 10 December 2010

The Golden Snitch - Mercury Retrograde

Little Mercury moves retrograde today, so we once again end the year with this little planet spinning backwards creating all sorts of thoughts and ideas within each of us. Like the Golden Snitch in Harry Potter’s Quidditch (thanks Jacqueline!), Mercury is a speedy little fellow, and so his influence can sometimes be so fleeting, that we miss him and fail to realise his importance.

Mercury gives each of us an opportunity to focus on our thoughts, and in particular to explore how we think. It is all too natural for most of us to think in terms of negatives - ‘I can’t’, ‘yeah, but’, ‘life is hard’, ‘nothing is easy’, ‘I am fat/skinny/poor’ etc.

The irony is that these thoughts of lack create more of the same in our lives. Like attracts like, so by thinking in a negative or restrictive way, we create that dynamic in our lives and keep it there. So, in some ways this is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Of course, changing the thinking to something more positive is not always that easy. When life is hard, it can be hard to see above the parapet and even contemplate a thought process that can start to change the dynamic. Yet, until we start to think more creatively, it is often the case that we cannot change the dynamic.

So, in some ways, we are caught between the devil and the deep blue sea...

Retrograde phases of any planet internalises its energy; and by taking it within we can start to understand ourselves better. We have had the opportunity this year to be true to ourselves, and to start thinking in terms of abundance, joy, love and harmony.

Mercury wants us to find fulfilment from within – to think about our lives, the world, and the way in which we live. Mercury wants us to see that ‘having it all’, and keeping up with consumerist trends is really not that fulfilling. Buying a new TV just because it’s the latest version, even when the old one is perfectly functional does not give us lasting joy. That joy comes from within, and it is now up to each of us to find it, experience it and to spread the word.

Mercury Retrograde can cause chaos with communications, contracts and other administrative issues – but try not to get too wrapped up in these – try to see the bigger picture instead. In any challenge or obstacle, look for a positive. Find things to be grateful for everyday. Very often that delay happens for a reason, it makes us stop or pause, re-think or reconsider our choices. So, welcome Mercury, embrace his blessing.

Of course, Mercury goes retrograde a lot, so we should all be used to the little games that he plays, yet at the same time we are often thrown into a state of disarray when things don’t go quite as planned. So, calm down, and breathe deeply.

Mercury looks set to give each of us a much needed kick up the posterior to stop thinking in negative ways. He wants us to see the power that such thinking has in our lives. It is time to start thinking positively and creatively to affect change in our lives.

At the same time, there is a need to live consciously, to see the bigger picture. It is the perfect time to de-clutter the mind (space is good, even in the mind!!). We need to be quiet, to still the mind and allow the really important thoughts to float up to the surface for us to work with. It is time to let all that mental flotsam and jetsam go, and to focus on what’s truly important now...

There is a strong need to be both pragmatic and philosophical over the next few weeks. Maybe, just maybe Mercury is being our best friend by causing well-timed delays to allow us a little more thinking time?

So, try to see the positive. And by taking a more philosophical approach to obstacles and hiccups, hopefully we can each reach the end of this retrograde phase stronger than ever before.

Mercury moves direct on the 30th December, just in time to utilise all of this positive thinking and make some powerful affirmations for the New Year...

Monday 6 December 2010

The Truth Will Out

Today (the 6th December) magnificent Uranus moves direct. Uranus has been in a cosmic clinch with Jupiter for much of the summer and autumn, and Uranus moving direct is the next big step on the cosmic calendar.

Uranus is the freedom seeking rebel fighting for individuality and Truth. He is the lightning strike that breaks down barriers, and the innovator bringing new ideas and thought forms into use. He is the ruler of intuition, and helps us to become more interconnected with the Universal energies. Uranus reflects not only our innate human longing to know where we are going and why, but also our need to feel part of something bigger.

Uranus is always forward thinking, never looking back, this is why Uranus is the rebel and the revolutionary – forcing change, forcing new ideas and changing traditions.

Of course, many people find it so hard to freely express their Uranian nature, as to do so, requires a great degree of detachment from taking a personal perspective. To be Uranian is to adopt a more collective or Universal perspective and this is quite alien to most people; so many individuals prefer to keep their heads down and their individuality locked away.

For those of us that do manage to achieve a more ‘detached’ and individual approach to life then we get to see the whole picture, warts and all. Not everyone wants to even acknowledge that...!

In general though, Uranus always finds a way to seep into our lives, so ignoring this electric and eclectic bundle of energy will serve little purpose. Change will occur – it might be hard, it might be challenging, but in order to grow and develop we need to embrace Uranus and the qualities that he brings. It is time now for change...

Over the past few months, each of us have been aware of the subtle changes going on within. These have been connected to us being more aware of our true Selves. Uranus wants us to be unique, special and individual – because we are. When we can truly be our Selves, we can embrace the other Uranian qualities and allow our gifts and potential to truly flow.

On moving Direct, Uranus wants each of us to let our true colour and individuality shine. It is important to acknowledge our gifts and Truth, and to not be afraid to step out from the shadows for all to see.

After a summer and autumn full of challenges (or opportunities!), it is important to remember that Uranus is the planet of infinite possibilities, one person can create a chain reaction of change, one person can set in motion a new thought or idea that can literally send shock waves of new thought or changed behaviour around the world.

Such shock waves are happening now. New thoughts, beliefs and insights are reaching out far and wide, and whilst many may not resonate, there is undeniably a calling towards more integration, individuality and freedom now.

So for those of us who can be free, feel blessed for this and grab your individuality with both hands. Embrace Truth and love your uniqueness. As Shakespeare once wrote ‘The Truth Will Out’ (The Merchant of Venice)

It is time to take that leap of faith...2011 looks set to be a year of magic, manifestation and abundance on so many levels...

Sunday 5 December 2010

Well, I have now moved, been snowed in and been without my internet connection as a result! However, things are now back on track...more from me tomorrow.

Sarah
x