Something you may not know about me is that I love K-dramas (Korean dramas). They are so good. I usually can’t sit through any US show for more than 5 minutes, but K-dramas are full of twists, turns, surprises, and emotional roller coasters. I recently watched one called Daily Dose of Sunshine which is currently on Netflix. It’s about a nurse who transfers to the psychiatry department. We are brought into a world of those dealing with mental health issues from panic attacks to self-harm, depression to schizophrenia. It’s not just about those in the psych ward, but others who are out in the world trying to live their daily lives while caring for their mental health. This drama addresses the denial, the prejudices, and the heartbreak that those with mental health issues, as well as their family and loved ones, experience. The nurse ends up in a psych ward herself for a while due to the suicide of one of her patients - offering viewers another perspective. This drama was beautifully done. It’s well-scripted, well-acted, and definitely worth a watch.
We need more awareness and compassion for those who are struggling with mental health issues and for those around them who are trying to support them. Thankfully, these days, mental health is starting to get the attention that it deserves and is much needed. Decades ago, it was so taboo to even think about seeing a “shrink.” I probably would’ve been a lot happier and handled things way better had I found some help, but the idea of that somehow becoming a stigma against all of my hard work and achievements kept me from taking that step. I handled it all on my own, the best I could manage. It wasn’t until I ended up in a specialist’s office for ocular migraines that it was suggested that I see a psychotherapist and that doctor happened to know one of the best. This was about 2 years or so after my gifts opened up in Sedona. I thought it would be good to get a professional’s opinion on whether I was crazy or not. I figured she’d gently let me know if I was delusional as I explained my work with the Angels. It was quite the opposite. Harriotte was one of the best gifts the Universe could’ve given me. She helped me see that I wasn’t crazy and that I don’t have to go through so much alone. She helped me see where I had to reframe my thinking. She saw my Light - which in turn made me want to see it too. Back to the K-drama. As I watched the episodes unfold, I could resonate on so many levels with the emotions and difficulties the actors were portraying. I started to do some reflection and introspection and I had some great breakthroughs that were perspective shifting. One realization I had was around self-worth. As someone who struggled for decades with low self-esteem, it all of a sudden seemed so obvious: there is no such thing as self-worth. There is no living being who is more or less worthy than another. We are all inherently worthy, yet we tend to base and scale our worth on others' expectations and perceptions - how many followers one has, how much money one makes, how much success one has, to name a few. I realized that it’s not even about whether we’re worthy or not, it’s about meaning. It’s not even a question (though we do tend to question it) whether our life has meaning - every life has meaning. We, as we exist, are meaning-full and our existence has meaning. There’s no scale to judge yourself by, unless you choose to lean on one. You have meaning, your life has meaning, and that is enough. The fun is in figuring out what that meaning is for you, what you can contribute and share with others. Another realization I had was about growing pains. We have them when we’re physically growing, but we also have them throughout our life as we face challenges and situations that either force us to grow or are opportunities for growth. No one wants to be in pain, but it is there to get our attention, it can teach us something, and it needs to be processed and released. Since I can feel other people's pain empathically, I just want to take that suffering away from them. I want to help them return to a state of feeling good or at least better. It doesn’t work that way. I’m not here to take away my clients' pain, I’m here to help them move through it more quickly and easily than if they tried to go through it on their own. This realization gave me more clarity on the work that I’m putting out into the world and it unexpectedly, and gratefully, took some of the weight off my shoulders. In the drama, they suggested to the lead character that she keep a compliment journal. Through this exercise, she discovered that complimenting herself was a lot more rewarding than receiving a compliment from others. We’re usually so hard on ourselves - judging, criticizing what we did or didn’t do on any given day. How often do we cheer ourselves on? I’ve started putting this into practice. It’s actually an awesome exercise. How often do you compliment yourself? Can you find at least one thing to compliment yourself on each day? It can be on the most trivial things or the ones that you feel proud of. This exercise helps us become less reliant on external compliments and gives us a stronger sense of self. Mental health is something we all should be paying attention to. What thoughts are you focusing on? Do they bring you peace or the opposite? Just as it’s important to feed your body healthy food, it’s equally important to feed your mind healthy thoughts. Are you immersed in the news or pulled into scrolling on your phone? What nourishment are you giving your mind that feels good and gives you a sense of joy or lightness? The last line of the drama states, “Each one of us is standing on the border between normal and abnormal.” Just as anyone can get physically ill, anyone can encounter mental health issues as well. Addressing our mental health and getting the help we may need - there is no shame in that.
P.S. I was listening to a playlist and this song by Lily Meola came up. I think it fits this blog post.
Sending you the biggest heart hug, Adrienne ☀️
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One of the biggest questions we have is ‘What happens after death?’ Do we just disappear? Do we end up in Heaven or maybe Hell? There is plenty of evidence from mediums, people who have had near-death experiences, and peoples' very own personal experiences that our loved ones still continue to exist once they’ve left their physical form. One belief that many religions and ancient traditions hold is that the soul continues after death. Personally, I’ve been visited in my dream by my best friend after she passed away. I've felt my grandpa’s energy so strongly, like his energy intermingled with my cells for a moment, the day after he passed. I’ve delivered messages on behalf of the deceased. I’ve helped and watched many cross over. I’ve witnessed a squirrel die and then saw its energy pop up right next to its body. To me, there is no doubt that we continue on once we disconnect from our physical body. It’s also my belief that hell is a man-made creation, but that’s for a different post.
Today is Día de Muertos - Day of the Dead - a day when the souls of the deceased return among the living to visit with their loved ones. November 1st is dedicated to the souls of children and November 2nd is for adults. There are still towns and people in México who celebrate this pre-Hispanic tradition that morphed with Catholicism. They set up altars in their home, or at the cemetery, using candles, photos of those who have passed, and some kind of religious symbols - usually of the Virgen de Guadalupe. They also put out the deceased's favorite foods for them to enjoy, as well as toys, if it’s a child or alcohol for the adults. Traditional orange marigold flowers are used due to the belief that their scent and color help lead the departed back to their loved ones. Día de los Muertos isn’t about the absence of those who have passed on, it’s about celebrating and honoring their living presence. I know many of you reading this have experienced the passing of family, friends, or other people who are dear to you. Death is not easy for the living as we’re left to cope with the grief of loss of the physical. Honor those emotions and feelings. Give yourself a chance to feel and process them. When you feel ready, I invite you to create your own tradition to celebrate those who have passed on. Something I do on the deathdate of my best friend is I find a beautiful flower and toss it into a body of water - whether I’m near a lake, ocean, or pond at that time. It can be as simple or as grand as you’d like to make it. It's a beautiful way that allows us the time and presence so we can have that connection with our loved ones in spirit. Life should be a celebration - and death as well as it’s just our transition back home, it's not the end. I found the following short clip from Coco that shows an example of an altar:
Heart hugs, Adrienne :)
Volcanoes and I don’t have the best relationship. My first time climbing a volcano was in the 90’s in Ecuador. It was the Cotopaxi and I wasn’t told that I needed sunglasses to protect my eyes. Due to the snow and being on the equator, I ended up burning the corneas of my eyes. The optometrist said that my contact lenses saved my eyes from the tiny ice particles and possible blindness. Another volcano I climbed was Mt. Fuji in Japan. I had a really hard time due to altitude sickness and ended up with some phsyical ailments that took about a year to overcome. Then, there was the Villarica volcano in Chile. I almost lost my life on that one. That was the tipping point that helped me realize that maybe I shouldn’t be climbing volcanoes. Volcanoes tend to represent the duality of creation and destruction, death and rebirth. Myths are created around them, deities are associated with them. The legend of Popocatepetl and Iztaccíhuatl is one such story that is worth a read. The Izta actually does look like a woman lying down. Volcanoes can trigger earthquakes, tsunamis, mudflows, and pyroclastic flows. Pyroclastic flows and surges are the most dangerous as they are fast moving (as in 62-435 mph) hot (1800F) gas and volcanic matter. It’s what took out the people of Pompeii. I’ve been to Pompeii and warily stared at the still active Mt. Vesuvius. The largest active volcano is Mauna Loa on the Big Island of Hawaii - also a place I have visited. Within the last few years, volcanoes have started showing up in my dreams, or maybe I should say nightmares. I’m used to tornado dreams which signify for me that big change is coming. I’m still figuring out what the volcanoes mean for me. In general, they can signify a repressed emotion that, unless dealt with, may surge forward. Most typically, they represent repressed anger. They can also represent transformation. They can reflect the stress, anxiety, and upheavals of our waking life. If you find there’s a recurring theme to your dreams, it’s time to pay attention. My most recent volcanic adventure was last spring in Mexico. I woke up one morning to ashfall - like snowfall, but ash. Surprisingly, ash is really heavy and it gets EVERYWHERE. The Popocatepetl was way more active than usual. We wondered if an eruption was soon to follow. Translation: The Popo at 7am, this is why there's so much ash. Source: unknown I was staying at a place just inside the evacuation zone. The ash was no joke, it made it hard to breathe and hurt like no other when it got into your eyes. I was pretty shocked that the mask and goggles I ordered on Amazon showed up the very next day. I had a go-bag ready, and spent nights watching the live feed cameras as material ejected from the crater. If you’re caught in a pyroclastic flow, there's pretty much no escape. There was a point when I wondered, is this how I die? That sucked. I watched interviews of people who lived the closest and in the biggest danger zones. They’ve lived with the volcano their entire lives. One woman said in an interview that she didn’t know how they expected people to evacuate when the roads were covered in potholes and speed bumps. Other than a woman who worked at the place where I was staying (and insisted we were all going to die), everyone else just went about their daily lives. I got the following video on social media and laughed a ton of the stress away. Source: unknown Thankfully, el Popo quieted down. Hundreds of millions of people around the world live near or even on volcanoes. They are a terrifying, yet beautiful force of Nature. And, for some reason, have been an integral part of my adventures and life. Heart Hugs, Adrienne :) We don't need to worry 'cause when we fall, we know how to land When I first heard the song "Permission to Dance" (BTS), the above lyric really hit me. I thought, I know very well how to fall, but do I know how to land? I sure didn’t think so. One of the singers from BTS, Suga (민윤기), had spoken about this during an interview: “I’ve said several times that I’m afraid of falling, but not landing. And the difference between falling and landing is that landing means that you can take off again.” As someone who is used to falling, for me, landing meant either going SPLAT and face planting into misery or it meant the end. The end of a relationship, a failed project, an important missed opportunity - you name it. Seeing it as an opportunity to take off again wasn’t really in my vocabulary. My inner critic adamantly confirmed that with, "You’re right, you’re not resilient. You’ve been beaten down too many times. Just stay down…” The definition of resilience is the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties. There are many kinds of resiliency: physical, mental, emotional, social, financial, job loss, divorce, failure - pretty much any area of life that can be challenging. Now, as someone who has felt like the least resilient person on the planet, I knew this was an area I needed to strengthen. I once heard a fellow student, during a class I was taking, comment on resilience and alchemy. She basically said that it’s not only about getting back up, but transforming into something greater. I began to wonder, how do we find or tap into our resiliency so that we can alchemize it? I learned that a big part of it is through awareness. You have to become aware that you actually are resilient - think of times where you’ve been resilient in the past. I made it to the top of Mt. Fuji while fighting altitude sickness which led to some physical issues after the fact. I made it up, and down, and recovered - there’s an example of resiliency. Think of how your body recovers from illness and trauma. Think of how you can find another job after being laid off or fired. Think of how you open yourself back up for love after a heart wrenching breakup. Think of how you pivot so you don’t give up on your dream. These are all examples of resilience. I figured out a little formula, that I call the 4Rs, for when I’m in a challenging situation that calls for resiliency:
The truth of the matter is we are way more resilient than we tend to believe. It’s an inner strength that we all have access to. Just as Nature is resilient, so are we. When we can tap into that resiliency we can navigate life’s challenges more easily. Let’s be honest, with as crazy as the world is right now, we need our resilience more than ever. There is another comment that Suga made in the interview that sums it all up perfectly: “So, no matter how desperate the situation is, if we choose landing instead of falling, choose not to give up, and just land, we’re ready to fly again.” Falling can be really scary, but at some point we will land and we will have that inner resilience to tap into to decide where we’ll go from there. If we can put our attention on landing instead of on the fact that we’re falling, we can direct our energy to harness what we learned and launch ourselves into something even greater. The next time you find yourself facing a big challenge, I invite you to focus on the landing, alchemize what you’ve learned from the situation, and use it as fuel to take off stronger and wiser so you can fly in the direction of your goals, dreams, and desires. Heart Hugs, Adrienne :) In the fall of last year, I saw an announcement for my 30 year high school reunion. I haven’t attended any past reunions and for some reason I really felt compelled to go to this one. In fact, I made up my mind to go. Then, the doubts started creeping in. How could I go? I had nothing to show for myself. I wasn’t married, didn’t have kids, the work I do is still considered “woo woo” in these parts - I felt like I’d be judged as a failure. I knew I’d have to do some serious re-framing of this mindset or I wouldn’t end up going. Plus, it made me feel like crap. I recognized that I was the one judging myself as a failure and would need to shift that. Thankfully, the Universe intervened in the form of an email. The subject line was ‘No more hiding your badassery.’ It was from Amber, from Woman Unleashed (I highly recommend that you check her out). Basically, she pointed out that we often censor our greatness. Society has told us (women) not to brag or boast or make others feel uncomfortable with our achievements. She’s right, why should we play small? Instead, let’s celebrate what we’ve accomplished. She shared a list of amazing things she’s achieved over the years and ended that list with “I am a badass.” I was really inspired and sat down to write my own list. Once I finished, I was really amazed - I’ve accomplished A LOT. Here are a few things from my list:
How could I think of myself as a failure when I look at the life I’ve lived and what I’ve been able to achieve? This list helped me shift my thinking and how I saw myself. The conventional life wasn’t for me. I’ve wanted to really explore and experience life, which I did and still do. This list gave me a confidence boost. It helped me see myself through a new lens. It helped me define success and failure in a new way. Going to the reunion was definitely outside of my comfort zone - none of my good friends were going, I didn’t have a plus one, I’m introverted, and even on the drive there my ego was like, “it’s not too late, let’s not go.” Thankfully, I didn’t listen. I told my ego that we’d go for 30 minutes and if I wasn’t enjoying it, I could leave. I actually ended up staying for several hours and had a great time catching up with people. I even won an award for the most countries traveled to. I’m sharing this experience with you in the hopes that you’ll feel inspired to write your own badassery list and celebrate your accomplishments. That you take a moment from the inner and outer judgments and noise to reflect on what has meaning for you. That you take those steps outside of your comfort zone so your soul can stretch, grow, and learn. If you’re someone who has been playing small, that you decide to play big. You deserve that. From one badass to another, I see you and I celebrate you! Heart Hugs, Adrienne :) As it's Valentine’s Day, it seems like a good time to take a moment to look at our relationships - especially one you have probably never considered before (more on that in a moment). If anything, this global pause has allowed us to take the time to take stock of our relationships, the ones we value and the ones needing changed. Our relationships extend past romantic interests and include family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors. There are also spiritual and religious relationships. What we tend to forget, though, is that the most important relationship is the one that we have with ourselves. I’d like you to take a moment to think about how your relationship is with yourself. Is it a loving one? Is it abusive? Do you pay more heed to the inner bully, the inner critic? What kind of conversations do you have with yourself? Are they positive and encouraging or are they more self-deprecating? More often than not, do you tend to love yourself or hate yourself? Do you embrace yourself fully or do you wish you were different? From a young age we are taught that we must please others, live up to external expectations, and tend to our external relationships - all while paying little to no heed to ourselves. It is not selfish to focus on your relationship with yourself - in fact, it is necessary. We are spiritual beings living a human life. Most of us tend to get to know ourselves as our ego, but rarely take it further to get to know the divine aspect that we also are. We are so much more than what we believe. We often tend to look to others to fulfill what we feel we are lacking - love, worthiness, happiness, compassion... All of that exists within ourselves. We have to take the time to re-learn how to tap into it. Meditation is a great way to start. If meditation is too challenging, begin by setting the intent and desire to get to know your true self. You can journal, have a conversation with your Soul, or look at yourself in the mirror and begin to look past your layers of ego identity. Peeling back all of the labels, acknowledge that aspect of who you truly are - your Soul self. Every relationship begins with and is sustained by connection and communication. Another relationship you should be taking a look at, especially in these times, is your relationship with fear. - Fear? - What? - Why? I know, seems a little crazy, right? The truth is, we have greatly misunderstood fear. We have given it a monster-like identity that doesn’t allow us to see the whole picture. Though it may feel like it at times, fear is not there to make our lives miserable. Fear serves a far greater purpose. It's also important to know that fear plays a much bigger role in our daily lives than we realize. It shows up disguised in our beliefs and our emotions. You might be surprised as to how many of your decisions are actually fear-based. We are all being impacted by fear on a continual basis - consciously, subconsciously, and collectively. Due to the range of events over the past year, the collective fear has been very intense. It may seem like it’s completely out of your control, but it’s not. Did you know that you can form a partnership with your fear and be empowered in your response to it? It’s absolutely possible, for anyone. I have put together a free live intensive training on seeing fear through a new perspective. It’s called Fear: The Other Side Of The Story. In this webinar, you will see fear in a new light, you will learn where fear actually comes from (the 5 contributing players), you will see where fear plays a role in your daily life, you will learn where fear hides and how to tap into it, and you will be provided with tools to help you soothe and work with your fear. It’s more important than ever to become aware of fear’s role in our lives. Isn’t it time we stop allowing ourselves to be manipulated through fear - especially when we do it to ourselves without even realizing it? In this month of love, remember to also turn it towards yourself. Take the extra time and effort to let those you have a valuable relationship with know how much they mean to you. Lastly, I challenge you to show your fear some love by gaining a new perspective on it, which you can do by attending the live webinar training. I wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day. Heart hugs and love to you, Adrienne :)
These past few weeks I’ve felt like a piñata. Trying to meet deadlines and a launch date and it all kept going wrong. So many stressful little things kept happening and then came the 2x4s. From my computer giving out (whack) to my new computer being defective (whack). In the course of one week, I accidentally poured freshly boiled water over my hand (whack), got the worst food poisoning I’ve ever had - resulting in 20 consecutive hours of vomiting - (whack, whack, whack), and my car decided to stop working in the middle of the interstate, needing a tow that took 4 hours to arrive, and over $700 in repairs and expenses (W-H-A-C-K). That was the blow that finally did it. I retreated. I’d had enough. My nerves were shot and my guts were starting to spill - and they weren’t candy.
Over the course of a few days, I went through a few stages. First, I was the victim - life, god, the universe, whatever it is, was beating the crap out of me. Why? How many beatings was I supposed to take? Why did I become the punching bag? What did I do to end up on the universe’s shit list? I noticed a lot of deep resentment and dread - what’s next? How far will this go? Will I be pushed past my breaking point? Then, I got mad - furious, actually. I went from being the piñata to holding the proverbial stick and I started swinging. Of course there was no piñata for me to hit back since god/source/universe is such an abstract construct. I was just swinging into empty space - hurling my frustrations and curses into nothingness. It was so exhausting and, frankly, even more infuriating. Next, I decided I was tired of the game. I didn’t want to play anymore. Bills, responsibilities, my project - all got pushed to the side as I binged Kdramas and chocolate. Reality was really sucking and I needed a break. It’s easy to get sucked into distractions, especially when you’re in a state of sheer overwhelm. I let myself disconnect, but I also knew I had to deal with it all sooner rather than later or I’d just be making things a lot harder on myself. “It could be worse” - I really hate it when people tell me that. Of course it could be worse, but the situation at hand isn’t so swell either. When someone tells me that ‘it could be worse,’ it feels like they aren’t acknowledging how challenging and hard it already is; like they’re dismissing or discounting my experience and my feelings around it. What would be helpful is someone saying, “Wow, that’s awful. Is there anything I can do to help? I’m just glad the situation's not any worse.” ‘That’s awful’ acknowledges the experience and how I feel about it. ‘Can I help?’ can feel like a lifeline even if there’s nothing they can do. ‘I’m glad it’s not any worse’ allows for some space to open up in order to hold gratitude that it isn't any worse. The way we word things really does make a difference. I don’t like being a victim, being the person trying to hit an invisible piñata isn’t satisfying either, and just taking myself out of it all by burying my head in the sand with distractions can only work for so long. I decided I needed a new way to look at things. If my suffering is connected to my thinking, to my perceptions, then that’s where I have to shift. I think it begins with curiosity. I find it curious that so many challenges came up one after the other and then some of them completely stopped me - the food poisoning kept me in bed for days, the car left me stuck - all at a time when I needed every hour in order to launch. What message was I not getting that those cosmic 2x4s had to come in? Needless to say, the universe has my attention. I guess it’s time to turn off Netflix and figure out what it’s been trying to say. It’s been nearly four years since I last posted in this blog. After writing weekly for three years, I decided to take a break. I didn’t realize that my hiatus would last this long. A lot has transpired since I last wrote, both in the world and in my own life. To catch you up a bit on where I’ve been and what I’ve been up to, I’d like to share about my time living and working at a Tibetan Buddhist retreat center pertaining to the Dalai Lama. For several years, Menla, known as Tibet in the Catskills, became my home. It’s a peaceful and beautiful retreat center nestled in a valley, high up in the Catskill mountains in New York. I love this place for so many reasons: the nature, the people, the quiet, and its mission as part of Tibet House US to help ensure the survival of Tibetan culture. For an empath, it was like medicine for mind and body. There’s a special energy there that’s similar to Sedona, except it’s not as intense and is more embracing and nurturing. I worked in the Dewa Spa on property. Dewa Spa is distinct in that there’s a focus on Tibetan medicine and healing. I highly recommend the KuNye massage by the way. I still worked with clients doing my Emotional Blockages Release sessions, but I mainly worked as a spa coordinator and assisted in keeping the spa running - from booking appointments to stocking treatment rooms to picking the flowers that would go into the special baths that we ran for guests. Ironically, the job was far from relaxing, but the space itself, and most especially the people, are what made it great. I have never seen so many talented massage therapists under one roof. Healers in their own right, the before and after differences in the guests said it all. My co-workers were more like family. Some of the biggest-hearted, most wonderful people I’ve ever met. Hiking was literally steps from my back door. There are multiple trails on property from easy to challenging. The water, sourced from a mountain stream, is the only water I’d ever drink straight from the tap - it’s that good. There are phenomenal gardens which source flowers for the arrangements found around property and veggies, greens, and fruit for the kitchen. A true farm to table with no toxic chemicals used. The mainly vegetarian kitchen prepares some of the most delicious food. Who knew that watermelon salsa tastes so good on black bean tacos?! Hiking up the mountain, I could feel where the wifi would drop off. There’s no cell service or TV at Menla which provides the perfect opportunity to connect with yourself and with Nature. Probably my favorite part about Menla is the wildlife. I felt like I was inside a show of Animal Planet. On my 8 minute walk to work, I could encounter a group of wild turkeys, deer, black bears and or snakes - all up close. The deer would show up at the spa and wait patiently for us to bring them a treat - usually apples. The bears were hilarious - napping in the apple trees, hanging from the enclosure door while trying to access the trash bins, rooting through the compost pile, or just chilling wherever. Though Buddhist by nature, Menla is a place where you can connect to that aspect, but it isn’t forced. Michael, the co-director, would generously lead classes for staff that would dive deeper into the practices and teachings - which I appreciated. I always enjoyed hearing Bob Thurman speak. Bob is a scholar of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies and friend of H.H. the Dalai Lama. Side note: Bob and Michael created the graphic novel Man of Peace: The Illustrated Life Story of the Dalai Lama of Tibet which is a very good read. Isa Gucciardi, a Buddhist shaman, is a definite favorite. I had some amazing shifts and insights due to her journeys and teachings when she would lead retreats at Menla. As with anything, life changes and chapters come to a close. Menla, and most especially the people I worked with there, will always hold a special place in my heart. I was able to learn new skills, immerse myself in nature, and my EBR sessions continued to evolve as I met new clients. It was a challenging time, it was a healing time, it was a time and space for me to connect with my true nature. As John Muir aptly stated, "and into the forest I go to lose my mind and find my soul." Heart Hugs, Adrienne :)
I refuse to be defined as racist, misogynistic, sexist, etc. just because the man who was elected as president appears to represent these traits. I am not my government. I am a human being. I am a human being who does her very best to break down the social filters and see my brothers and sisters with love. I don’t care what color you are, what sex you are, what religion you practice, what country you’re from, or who your partner is. I accept you for you. I've had the amazing opportunity to have lived in other countries and experience many other cultures. What I learned is that we may look different and act differently, but essentially we’re all the same. We all want to be loved and accepted for who we are. What I hold dear about the U.S. is that we're this beautiful melting pot. I love our uniqueness and our differences. Think of how boring it would be if we were all the same. How would we ever learn and grow from each other without our differences? Having lived in NYC, I can tell you that peaceful co-existence between people from every culture on this planet is not only a possibility, it is a reality. As a woman, who has had enough experience with living in a yanged-out (over masculinated) society, I can join the bandwagon and lament how the outcome of this election sets us back. Or, I can allow it to make me stronger. The president does not represent me. I represent me. If I want to find peace on this planet then I will start with myself. I will do my work. I will commit to my own healing. Trump may be an elected official - but he does not represent or define me as a human being. One of my biggest peeves traveling abroad was that I was automatically judged and criticized for being an American. I had to remind myself - I am not my government. I couldn’t understand how people, who did not know me or bother to get to know me, could look at me and treat me with hatred just because of my nationality. Fear does that you know, it divides and it conquers - if you allow it. I recently read a great description about fear that I feel is very important to share. "Fear is the baseline negative state. Not just some of the time, or even most of the time. All the time. (...) Fear is nothing. It's a parasite. It has no core, no life force of its own. It feeds on life, so when its stories don't take you in, and you don't react to them, but instead just observe it, you deny fear a place to feed. And when it has nowhere to feed, it begins to dissipate. Every time. So each time you look fear in the face, it will weaken, shrink and finally disappear." (Book 3 of The Grandmothers Speak, Sharon McErlane). Simply, fear is just a parasite - it’s your choice whether you will feed it or not. It’s time for we the people to rise up and BE the change we want to see. Stop looking outside and blaming others. Take our own responsibility. There is so much fear in the world - it is projected on a daily basis through ignorance, anger, rage, hatred, you name it. You always have a choice to feed that fear or not. It’s your choice to buy into it and allow it to grow -or to see it for what it is, not participate and allow it to weaken. It's time we stop pointing fingers and do our own work. I’ve seen a lot of comments about 'what will I tell my daughter?' You tell her the truth - there are people out there who are confused. They only see the surface of someone and act from a place of social conditioning that is no longer acceptable (and never should have been in the first place). This does not change her worth. She is not less than just because someone else says so. Eleanor Roosevelt hit the nail on the head: No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. Encourage her to step into the beautiful person that she is and to see others through the same loving, respectful eyes that you ask her to see herself. This election actually provides us with the amazing opportunity to really make this world a better place. We know what we don’t want, so let’s focus on what we do want - love, acceptance, joy, community. Be loving and accepting of yourself and share that energy with everyone you meet. Some may not be that open to it as they’re too entrapped in the fear and ego game. That’s o.k. You send them love anyway - they really need it. We are only set back as a country if we the people allow it - it comes down to our own individual actions. So as it goes with free will, you have the choice to perpetuate fear, ignorance and division or BE the loving Soul that you are. It doesn’t come down to Trump, it comes down to you. Love, Adrienne :)
"Success requires the emotional balance of a committed heart. When confronted with a challenge, the committed heart will search for a solution. The undecided heart searches for an escape." |
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November 2023
AuthorHello! I'm Adrienne Almamour, an empathic intuitive conduit. I assist people by detecting and clearing their subconscious emotional energy blockages. This blog is a commentary and reflection of life from an intuitive standpoint which also incorporates ways that allow us to be from our heart. |