20 Ways to Set Your Spirit Soaring (and they’re all FREE)

Getting in touch with your innate sense of well-being can be fun, inexpensive and easy.

Here is a list of things that life has to offer that are 100% free — no strings attached (except in the case of playing with kittens):

  • Friendship — Connect with real people (not just social networking), make new connections and rekindle old relationships, if appropriate.
  • A smile — Dish them out!  You have nothing to lose.  Pass them around.
  • A heart-felt hug/embrace — It never goes astray, have you noticed?  Making physical contact is extremely important for any living creature.
  • A compliment Be impeccable with your words, let only kind, well thought-out words roll off your tongue.
  • Fresh air — Yes, it is free and beneficial.  Be grateful for a deep breath of oxygen.
  • Cloud spotting — This is preferably done on freshly mown, green, lush grass.
  • Swimming — A swim in the ocean or a lake, or even a pool.  The feeling of being weightless and carefree.  Priceless!
  • Humour — Share a good joke, get laughing — it’s the best medicine.
  • Smelling — When was the last time you literally stopped to smell the roses? Use your senses wisely…
  • Children — Watching a baby or a child/children play is one of the most uplifting past-times.  It’s free and it usually puts a smile on your dial.
  • Kittens — Have you ever watched a kitten or cat play with a piece of string?  Another priceless activity that will get your heart-strings all in tune.
  • Dogs — One of my favourite things to observe is witnessing a dog disembarking from a car to see he is at the beach!   If you don’t have pets, go sit in the park and watch animals frolicking.  Just remember joy is contagious — anyone’s or anything’s joy rubs off, did you know that?
  • Mountains — There they are, just standing there looking pretty…go climb one!  It’s an amazing feeling.
  • Walking — Strolling through a meadow on a sunny spring morning, watching butterflies dance their way through the sky in front of you.  When last did you do that?
  • Napping — Having an afternoon nap in the sun or under the shade of a tree.  Bliss!  For anyone who’s been to South Africa, you would have noticed that people do this all the time — during lunch-breaks, coffee breaks, etc.
  • Sand castles — Building a sandcastle is just terrific.  Getting down and mucky in the sand.  Free and liberating!  Note to the beachless:  sorry about that, perhaps it’s time to take a trip to the nearest coast or plan that next tropical holiday?
  • Stomping — Once you’ve built the sand castle, jump on it and smash it into the ground.  Do you remember doing that!?!  Pure elation and freedom from attachment. Release the joy of your inner child.
  • Music — Play your favourite songs and instantly lift your vibration!
  • Be grateful — Make a list of all the things going right in your life and you’ll be surprised at just how well you are manifesting your existence.
  • Creative Expression — The last FREE thing on my list is my book ‘Creative

    How to find your inspiration…

    Expression — How to find your inspiration…’  It is available on this site as a FREE download once you subscribe (subscription is also 100% FREE).

How freeing is it to know that there is so much to do that doesn’t come with a price tag attached?

Sometimes we need to concentrate on being in the now, focus on the little joys of life to squeeze the ultimate bliss out of every day.

What things do you like to get up to that are free and priceless?  Please share your stories…

Here is a blog that you may find interesting:

How to find happiness without buying it

Help Others.org: On Passing Around Smiles… — A Kindness Story.

No Free Handouts — You Have to Work for your Happiness

My Top Art Picks for 2012

I’ve had rather a busy beginning to 2012.  What with my book finally being released whilst  keeping up on the art front to hold the fort in place.

For today’s art blog I thought I’d show you my favourite 6 painting picks from January’s busy and tousled easel.

I hope you enjoy them.

Red Poppies in the Forest

Zebra Love

Blue Poppies in the Meadow

Vase of Poppies

Rhapsody in Blue

Blue Poppies — Finding Beauty in Chaos Series

All the paintings above are sold but they are available as greeting cards and prints (just click on the image to take you to RedBubble).

Have a happy and productive Wednesday!

FREE BOOK GIVEAWAY

Get your FREE copy of ‘Creative Expression’ HERE

Or, alternatively, it can be purchased as a paperback at lulu.com.

“Bite size teachings on how to express your creative flare and how to ignite your passion for life.

Learn how creativity is food for the soul and that the world is just waiting to be shaped and moulded by you – the co-creator of your reality.”

My art portfolio book is available HERE to purchase or just to browse through (click ‘preview’ under book icon at lulu.com)…

Art Commissions — The Soulworks Project (Part 4)…The Finished Product!

Please read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 to recap.

Let’s Pick Up with a Hiccup!

So I left off last weeks blog with a slight hiccup…

My client came to see the painting and she liked it but I could sense something was bothering her.

“I had misinterpreted her want for silver, black, a hint of green, pink and purple tones to mean that was all the colours she wanted in the piece.”

When we got into it she divulged that she had wanted more of an orange/pink glow in the sunset and that the whole painting was a bit monotone.  I had misinterpreted her want for silver, black, a hint of green, pink and purple tones to mean that was all the colours she wanted in the piece.

This turned out not to be the case.

What to do next?

I listened to her requests and told her that I would first come up with a digital overlay of what she was asking for.

“It is important to listen to the needs of your client…”

I do this to see what the painting will look like with the changes and if it actually suits the painting.  Here is what I came up with:

What I did here was take the photo of the painting and use the ‘airbrush’ feature in my Ulead programme (most photo editing packages have an airbrush feature) to paint in the required adjustments.

I saw that it actually brought the picture to life.

It is important to listen to the needs of your client but it is also important to stick with the integrity of the painting.  What does that mean?

Integrity Check

Well, if I feel that the changes that the client wants do not fall in line with the artwork then I will let them know.  If I feel strongly that it will ‘take away’ from the artwork, then I try to explain the potential hiccups in changing the piece.

However, in this case, the changes my customer wanted actually enhanced the artwork and I had to agree with her in the end, that it was for the betterment of the piece.

Once we had discussed all the little changes she wanted, I went back to the drawing board (or easel, in this case).

The Finished Project

After implementing the final adjustments to the painting, the Soulworks Project was complete!

Here is a picture of the finished artwork.

Available as cards and prints – click here

My client was thrilled it now hangs in her office/consulting room and she now uses it on her business cards and brochures as well as her website.  Check out her site at www.soulworks.co.za.

Don’t forget your FREE copy of my book ‘Creative Expression’GET IT HERE

How to find your inspiration…

Do You Understand Unconditional Love?

Playing with Words

Now let’s cast aside all cheesy connotations of the word and let’s have a closer look at it…LOVE.

L  O  V  E.

Yes, but what does it mean?

Now I like to play with words and I think it is fascinating that word like disease broken down are ‘dis-ease’ and ‘remember’ is to ‘re-member’ (become a part of the whole again), so love backwards begins to spell…evol – ve?  Maybe…evol – ution…could be.  Just a thought…

Aren’t we all progressively trying to evolve in one way or another?  Could love be the catalyst for evolution?

To Love Unconditionally

Love is more than a word or chemical reaction in the brain telling us how we feel.  Love is the Universal language of emotion.  It can even be called the ultimate emotion.  Or going out on a limb, the only true emotion – the one that leads back to Source.

“We say we love unconditionally but in reality our love always comes with conditions attached.”

There are of course ‘different’ types of love.  The love a mother has for a child, the romantic kind of love, brotherly/sisterly love, love for thy neighbor, and the list goes on.  You get the picture.  But what does it really mean?

Love is unconditional.  Another word that most people roll their eyes at…what is unconditional?  We say we love unconditionally but in reality our love always comes with conditions attached.  Think about it.

Do you love your partner unconditionally?  No, I hear you say.  Okay, why?  Well, because there is the fear of them leaving or, even worse, leaving me for someone else.  Fear, another wonderful concept that I delve into in my new book ‘Divine You’ (now available at all good bookstores!).

Understanding Love

Heart IITo love unconditionally is best likened to the parental type of love.  Even though it goes to say that even some parents love with attachments — this is most typically found in Western and even in Eastern cultures where parents tend to live through their children and do not let the children experience their own desires.  But typically a parent loves their child (ren) unconditionally.

” A parent will love their child even if that child does something unspeakable…”

This is the closest we are going to get in this 3D realm to what unconditional love really looks like.  A parent will love their child even if that child does something unspeakable.  Even if your child were to commit a serious crime.  You wouldn’t just stop loving your child if they were to murder someone.

You might be devastated but you will still love them.

Turning off Judgment to Experience Love

Love is something you can’t switch off.  But judgment is.  Judgment can be switched off, it just takes time and practice.  I say this because our need to judge continuously clouds our need to love unconditionally.

“We judge in others what we don’t like about ourselves.”

Isn’t that what this is really about?  We blind ourselves through judgment of others.  Why?  Because everyone is mirrored back to us.  We judge in others what we don’t like about ourselves.

I will continue more on this topic in Thursdays blog (please click the ‘follow’ button in the sidebar if you wish to be instantly updated when blogs are released).  This has been an extract from my latest book ‘Divine You — Redefining Love in the New Earth’ which is now available.

Sign up to my monthly newsletter subscription and get monthly blog updates, news and more.  A FREE copy of my book ‘Creative Expression’ is also yours when you subscribe.  Subscription is 100% FREE, no strings attached so you’ve got everything to gain and nothing to lose.

VIEW ALL AVAILABLE BOOKS HERE

Why 3 Is A Magic Number

This is an extract from the second chapter — about The Trinity — in my latest book ‘Divine You — Redefining Love in the New Earth’ now available through Barnes & Noble, Amazon, WHSmith and Waterstones Bookstores.

The Power of 3

The number 3 is a metaphor for the catalyst — it is the number of action.

“Father, Son and Holy Spirit are an expression for the Divine within you, your true, raw and, in most cases, unrealized potential.”

In this case, the action required to bring about Heaven on Earth, or HOME (Heaven on Mother Earth) as I like to call it, through a massive awakening in us and our ability to merge this sacred trinity together — within ourselves — to embrace and be one with the Divine. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are an expression for the Divine within you, your true, raw and, in most cases, unrealized potential.

The concept of mind, body and spirit is a powerful trio and trinity in itself. When closely examined, it could be considered as a metaphor for the sacred oneness of the Divine, duality (our embodiment), and the unity of consciousness (the realization that we are all One that makes up the Whole again). A closed circuit of continuous Divine energy.

The Splinter In Your Mind

When you realize that the ‘splinter’ in your mind, that one thing that you sense is out of kilter but you can’t seem put your finger on, is the remembrance of your true state of existence then you can begin to piece together the memories of your Divine self.

“What a wonderful representation of the trinity when it is symbolized as the triangle – it will never change its shape, unbending and durable.”

The splinter is that part of you, the true self, trying to come out and manifest in this 3D plane of existence. Yes, there it is again – the 3 even crops up in reference to the dimension we infer ourselves to be most present in.

The triangle is a perfect example of the 3, the sturdiest shape possible. The only ‘perfect’ figure which if all endpoints have hinges will never change its shape unless the sides themselves are bent. What a wonderful representation of the trinity when it is symbolized as the triangle – it will never change its shape, unbending and durable. This is a remarkable example of our uncompromising totality.

Tune in for more…

Over the next few weeks I will be taking some more juicy extracts from my book to give you a taste of what Divine You is all about.  So please stay tuned as I tempt you with more teachings on reclaiming your innate Divine power…press the ‘follow’ button on the sidebar to get e-mail notifications of new blogs.

This book encourages the reader to re-examine some fundamental qualities to living a happy and content life.  It looks at the importance of forgiveness, why it is imperative not to judge, how to use the Law of Attraction, present moment awareness, what unconditional love really looks like, how to vanquish fear, awakening the unity that is the christ-consciousness seed within you and lots more.

GET YOUR FREE COPY OF ‘CREATIVE EXPRESSION’ HERE

How Can Everyone Be Divine?

This is an extract from the first chapter in my latest book ‘Divine You — Redefining Love in the New Earth’ now available through Barnes & Noble, Amazon, WHSmith and Waterstones Bookstores.

Are We Really Divine?

Is it really a surprise that instead of searching outside of yourself for a savior to come and save you that, indeed, you are that savior?

The cliché that everything you’ll ever need is within you is now appearing to be an absolute truth. In fact, truth is better defined as integrity which is an undivided completeness and/or a state of totality with nothing wanting. It is a much easier, and if I might say, lazier route to hand over the job of spirituality and the understanding of the ‘God’ concept to someone or something else outside of yourself.

“…we must never hand our power over to anything or anyone outside of ourselves.”

This is what has happened through the various religions and even some of the ‘new age’ practices. You are handing your power over to someone else. If we are to take back control over our destiny and life as we know it on this planet, we must never hand
our power over to anything or anyone outside of ourselves.

We are powerful Divine beings.

What It Really Means To Be Christ-Like

The parables of Jesus Christ always felt like he had a greater understanding of people and the way this world should be experienced – especially when he spoke of our innate divinity (being the sons and daughters of God).

“Words are powerful tools of both positive and negative vibration.”

This is why I feel that the stories of Jesus Christ were tales of spiritual morality that encompassed compassion, empathy, non-judgment and love.  When someone speaks his or her truth there is always a resonance within the words being said that will affect you positively. Words are powerful tools of both positive and negative vibration.

So, when Jesus spoke his truth, it resonates within because fundamentally we know what it sounds like as everyone has this form of integrity inside them and that is how we recognize it.

Our truths are buried deep inside and the whole process of enlightenment is to shine a light on it and to bring ourselves into complete clarity and wholeness.

More Tasty Tit-Bits To Come…

Over the next few weeks I will be taking some more juicy extracts from my book to give you a taste of what Divine You is all about.  Please stay tuned…

This book encourages the reader to re-examine some fundamental qualities to living a happy and content life.  It looks at the importance of forgiveness, why it is imperative not to judge, how to use the Law of Attraction, present moment awareness, what unconditional love really looks like, how to vanquish fear, awakening the unity that is the christ-consciousness seed within you and lots more.

GET YOUR FREE COPY OF ‘CREATIVE EXPRESSION’ HERE

Do You Lack Self-Worth When it Comes to Creativity?

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“It may help to remember that in the cosmic design, pain is neutral. In the physical world, pain motivates us negatively, while pleasure motivates us positively. True freedom is letting go of our attachment to both. The best way to begin this process is developing a state of witness consciousness through practices such as meditation and mindful awareness.” ~ D. Chopra

This extract was taken out of the latest Deepak Chopra blog, please click on the link below to read the full article — it is definitely worth the read:

Balance. Heal. Transform. The Chopra Center Blog.

Hitting the Nail on the Head

I think that Dr Chopra really hit the nail on the head with the statement above.  It is, synchronistically, a topic that I was just trying to convey to a friend of mine.

It is quite difficult to explain that one needs to disengage or detach from any perception of good or bad, that there only is.

Your mind has been trained to mentally label things or situations as either positive or negative.  We can choose to view anything, as was mentioned in the above quotation, as a conscious witness.  This means detaching from judgment and the need to apply a label.

“…any past trauma or early childhood inhibition could seriously stop you from trying a new venture.”

When you commit to any creative endeavour, one must clear the path, so to speak, of any loose debris that might be clouding your way.  For instance, any past trauma or early childhood inhibition could seriously stop you from trying a new venture.

Do you feel unworthy?

The Self Worth Issue

Let me cut through all the BS and get straight down to the brass tacks here.  Everyone is worthy.  If you are not feeling self-worth then you have probably set yourself up with a life lesson(s) to experience this feeling.

“This means that you take responsibility for agreeing to whatever or whoever made you feel unworthy.”

Your job is to identify where, in your past, you first agreed to take on this role.  This means that you take responsibility for agreeing to whatever or whoever made you feel unworthy (please read The 4 Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz for more about this very important subject of the agreements we make and how it affects our lives).

This may sound harsh but we must get real now or face the consequences of always feeling victimized.  When you carry a victim mentality you will never feel that you can be self-empowered.

It Takes 2 to Tango

So, the first step is to take responsibility for your choices.  And please do this with compassion for yourself and for whomever else may be involved.  When we agree to take on a lesson, it usually takes two souls to tango.

“…it is so important for us to be able to forgive and to not judge.”

This means that there is usually a ‘bad guy’ (or gal) but if we could view this from a perspective that is beyond the veil of our current reality, we may find that the ‘bad guy’ is posing as such to help us fulfill a soul lesson on the deepest of levels.  This is why it is so important for us to be able to forgive and to not judge.

When we are able to see, with clarity, the root point at which the conflict took place, we are able to glean the necessary teaching from it.  When we are able to do this, we are able to forgive and move on in our lives.

Where has this teaching or lesson taken you?

What have you learnt from it?

Can you agree to accept the lesson with gratitude and move on?

Letting Go to Move On

If you can truly let go of a past trauma, you will feel the absolute liberation of taking back your power.  When you accept responsibility for your actions and choices, you become self-empowered, knowing that nothing in this Universe happens by chance — you are at the very heart of every experience you have chosen.

Now to the Creativity Part…

When you commit to a creative project, whether it be in music, writing, art or any other form of creative expression, it is important to be grounded in your integrity.

“This is why it is important to face your demons and start a creative endeavour with a clean slate.”

If you are, say for instance, writing from a place of knowledge but lack the wisdom for which you write, you are lacking a certain portion of integrity.  In other words, if you want to write about something that you know a lot about but have not actually experienced or passed the learning thereof, you are not coming from a place of true integrity.  This is why it is important to face your demons and start a creative endeavour with a clean slate.

You can of course start anything without doing the groundwork but your success is usually stunted when you know you are not acting from true source.  If you believe in yourself 100% there is nothing that will get in your way of true creativity or success.

To kick-start this day off, I am offering subscribers a FREE PDF copy of ‘Creative Expression — How to find Your Inspiration’ (CLICK HERE).

How to find your inspiration…copy of my book ‘Creative Expression — How to find your inspiration…’ HERE (or click on the book cover).  Subscription to the site is 100% free, no hidden agendas — I only wish to share this book with you.

If you would like to order the paperback version of this book, you can do that HERE.