from the Gates of Prayer: The New Union Jewish Prayer Book

http://coaches.aol.com/love-and-sex/feature/_a/follow-your-heart-van-epp/20061011110209990001

Children automatically invoke joy. Regardless of your mood or despondency they have a way of bringing light and energy and tons of smiles. You can't help but feel happy when you see big innocent eyes, little fat legs learning to crawl, or 9 year olds who are "weight lifting." :-) Playing the wii with them or uno or patty cake are all fun activities. It's a simple and yet beautiful way of feeling joyful. Find a child to play with today.

Every moment of every day, choose. Choose to do the right thing, the tough thing, - not the familiar, easy thing. Choose the way of the warrior or the way of the coward. Make your choice out of love instead of fear. Choose from the heart. Choose to live fully, not to sleepwalk through your life. Choose to respond with the way you really feel, not the way you're supposed to feel. ...Make your own choices in your own time and choose to stick to them.

~excerpt from Words of Wisdom for Women by Rachel Snyder. p. 45

What do you fill your mind with? What thoughts primarily occupy your space? What is constantly in your head? Now ask yourself, What goals do you have in life that aren't being accomplished and why? Is it because your primary focus is on things you have no control over? We may be worrying about the state of the economy or the end of time or what our mate is or isn't doing. But do we have any control over those things? Absolutely not. Yet they get the majority of our attention. I work daily to control my mind and my thoughts. I'm not always successful but I strive to have a clear mind. I am diligent in allowing certain thoughts to be a part of my day and others I rebuke! I want to live a happy life. I want to be peaceful. If my mind is cluttered with junk I won't have the energy to be happy or peaceful. I will constantly be in a state of panic and not peace. Clear your mind through prayer, meditation and affirmations.
~be at peace.

"What is morality?"

"Judgment to distinguish right and wrong, vision to see the truth, courage to act upon it, dedication to that which is good, integrity to stand by the good at any price."

~p. 168, Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

" When we change the way we look at things. The things we look at change."

Look at something that has been on your mind from a different angle today. Take a good hard look at it and examine how you have been studying it. Now look at it with different eyes, in a different light, from a different point of view. Does it still look the same? Does it still hold the same intensity?

Change your perspective...

This was shared with me and worth passing on.....


Be in Joy now and everything will change
In the moment that I discovered The Secret I realized that I had been living my entire life backwards. If things were good in my life, I was happy. If things were difficult in my life and everything was going wrong, I was stressed and miserable. In my ignorance, I had been misusing the law of attraction all of my life. But all of that changed when I had the knowledge of The Secret.
To live in accordance with The Secret and the most powerful law in the Universe, we must be in Joy first - and then everything will change. To live our lives by emotionally reacting to what is happening outside of us is misusing the law! As we react with negative emotion to any difficulties, we attract more negativity into our lives. We cannot defy the law of attraction, which operates on the most microscopic levels of vibration, and with absolute exactitude.
You must be in Joy first. And then your life will change into Joy.
Difficult times are the greatest opportunities in disguise. When we face difficult times we have to put in determined work to get ourselves into Joy. But let me tell you, when you can get yourself into Joy despite what is happening around you, your life must change - it's the law!
In addition, as you become Joy in difficult times you are becoming the master of your emotions, the master of your life, and the master of the law of attraction. Difficult times are your greatest opportunity to practice yourself into Joy.
Of course if your life is going along swimmingly then it is very easy to be in Joy. During those times your Joy is most likely a reaction to the good times. But the magnificence and the power that you really have within you will be seen when you can be in Joy during difficult times. It is then that you will see the true power that you have within you, because as you hold to Joy, you will shift all the energies of the Universe, and your life and your world will change.
The cause of everything is within you, and the effect is what you experience in your life. You have the power within you to change everything by putting yourself in Joy. You can change everything so easily by becoming Joy first! And nothing can change until you get yourself in Joy, because that is the law of attraction. Like attracts like! The energy of Joy attracts energy of Joy!
Do whatever it takes to find your Joy, and then keep yourself in it no matter what. Keep ramping up your level of Joy every day. There is no limit to the levels of Joy you can reach. You will see change to the degree of Joy that you can attain and maintain. The higher the Joy you can create within you, the more spectacular the change, and the higher the Joy, the faster the change. Once you get yourself in Joy it is easy to maintain it, because your emanation of Joy attracts more Joy. The law of attraction will continually send you more feelings of Joy.
You cannot criticize or blame or complain when you are in Joy. You cannot be afraid when you are in Joy. You cannot speak negatively when you are in Joy. You cannot harm another when you are in Joy. Negativity cannot reach you when you are in Joy.
When you are in Joy you are compassionate. When you are in Joy you are considerate and caring. When you are in Joy you love others. When you are in Joy you appreciate everything. When you are in Joy you are in love with the world, and the Universe is in love with you.
Be in Joy. Seek it with all of your heart, and you will find it.
May the Joy be with you,
Rhonda Byrne

My almost 3 year old niece, Noni, is a hypochondriac. Everything hurts all the time. Recently she's been telling us her leg hurts and when we ask her to show us where she points at an old scar from a bruise she got months ago. But it still hurts. Aren't we like that as women? We have our old scars that we keep talking about and showing all who will listen just how much we hurt. Our old scars are usually from relationships and our wounds are bitterness, anger, distrust and fear. We may have received these "scars" years ago but they never heal because we don't want them to. They have the capacity to heal, just as our skin does after a bruise, but like Noni, we want to talk about how much it hurts. Starting today, allow your scars to heal. Let the memory of how much you were done wrong fade and allow the lesson learned to be alive. Stop talking about those old scars and start affirming new experiences. In life we will constantly develop bumps and bruises both emotionally and physically. The beauty is that both will heal with time and our effort.

Change in life is mandatory and like air it's necessary for us to breathe. Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson, M.D. (http://www.whomovedmycheese.com/) is a great little book which gives powerful insight on change.


Life is no straight and easy corridor along
which we travel free and unhampered,
but a maze of passages,
through which we must seek our way,
lost and confused, now and again
checked in a blind alley.

But always, if we have faith,
a door will open for us,
not perhaps one that we ourselves
would ever have thought of,
but one that will ultimately
prove good for us.
~A.J. Cronin

Sometimes to maintain emotional peace we need to do the opposite of what we are feeling in the moment. In the moment we may feel the need TO KNOW when in fact we don't. We need to be still and allow situations to unfold naturally. By acting in the moment we feel as though we have some measure of control over a situation or person. That's an illusion. The only control we have is over ourselves. Ask yourself, "what am I feeling at this moment and by acting on this feeling what do I hope to happen? " Stop for a moment and imagine what it is that you want to feel or to happen. And then imagine that feeling. If you want to feel good....feel it. Instead of acting on an impulse that is external; focus on your internal stimuli. Focus on changing how you feel. That is what you have control over. Do the opposite of what impulsively you feel the need to do and create the environment that you desire instead.

~have a blissful day~

My son is blessed to have two mommy's. I am the one that carried him and cares for him on a daily basis. Ivy is the one that plays with him and spoils him. I am the one that gained an extra 10 pounds and pushed him out after hours of labor. Ivy is the one that sings songs with him and plays games until they are both exhausted. I am the one that gets him ready for school in the morning, checks homework in the afternoon and gives him bed time kisses. Ivy is the one that still pulls him close to her heart and checks every cough, sniffle or bruise he may get. I call him Yums. She calls him teddy bear. She is a gorgeous woman and I am the lucky one to have another woman love him as much as I do. Society calls her his step mother. To me, she is his mother.

"happiness was the greatest agent of purification...."

p.37 from Atlas Shruggd by Ayn Rand. http://atlasshrugged.com/

As women we sometimes suffer from bouts of anxiety. It may be due to hormonal shifts, unresolved issues or major work or life events. Anxiety can at times feel crippling but it's important to remember that it's not! Breathe in peace and breathe out the source of your tension...


3 Ways to Reduce Anxiety
Reviewed By: Steven A. King, M.D.
Everyone has felt it at one time or another: You get nervous before a speech or a big test, and your palms begin to sweat. Or, perhaps you just feel a general unease about your health, finances or family life.
A sense of uneasiness about the future is generally known as anxiety. These feelings affect both the body and the mind. When you become anxious, your body releases a hormone called adrenaline. It is nature's way of warning you that danger (both real and imagined) is imminent.
As anxiety increases, you may experience symptoms such as a pounding heart, quickened breathing and perspiration. The more you worry about something, the stronger these symptoms are likely to become.
Many people experience mild to moderate episodes of anxiety. For some, such nervousness may interfere with their ability to enjoy life fully. However, there are steps you can take to reduce or even eliminate your anxious feelings.
Three-Step Solution
There are many ways to reduce anxiety. Three of the most effective are:
Set aside a time to worry. Do you find yourself fretting about things periodically throughout the day? If so, you are probably living with a constant and unhealthy low-level hum of anxiety.To fix this problem, set aside a period of each day where you do nothing but worry. Think about the issues you face and potential solutions for up to 30 minutes. After the time has expired, make a vow not to think about your problem again until your anxiety time the following day.
Confront subjects that have triggered past bouts of anxiety. Your anxiety level is particularly likely to spike prior to situations that have provoked angst in the past. If you broke out in a cold sweat and stuttered during your last PowerPoint presentation, odds are good that the butterflies will awaken in your stomach shortly before the next go-round.Prior to an anxiety-provoking event, try to visualize yourself in the situation. If this makes you feel anxious, try a relaxation technique to see if this calms your feelings. Later, when the real-life situation makes you nervous, try these techniques again and see if they have a calming effect.Also, prepare yourself as much as possible prior to the event. You are much less likely to feel anxious if you are confident and in control of your situation. For example, someone who studies diligently before a test is much less likely to experience exam-related anxiety than a peer who tries to cram in all preparation the night before the test.
Take care of your body and mind. One of the best ways to prevent anxiety is to take care of yourself. Numerous studies show that physically fit, well-rested and contented people are less likely to be vulnerable to bouts of anxiety.For example, people who maintain close relationships have a network of support that makes them less vulnerable to anxiety. Taking the time to enjoy life and to engage in hobbies you enjoy helps reduce levels of both stress and anxiety.Relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, can also help. In this exercise, you lie down on a flat surface. Place one hand on your stomach above the navel, and the other hand on your chest. Breathe in slowly until the stomach rises a bit and hold your breath for a second. Then, exhale slowly.Muscle relaxation, in which you tense and relax your muscles one by one, is also used by some to reduce anxiety. Some people benefit from yoga or meditation.Studies show that regular exercise is one of the best ways to ward off anxiety and to build a stronger sense of well-being. It's also important to avoid overindulging in unhealthy foods, and to avoid abuse of alcohol, drugs (both legal and illegal) and stimulants such as caffeine.Finally, be sure to get plenty of rest. A full night's sleep relaxes both body and mind and makes you less susceptible to anxious thoughts.

It is not enough just to visualize a goal for a few minutes, and then let doubts and disbelief fill your mind for the rest of the day.
It is not enough just to visualize a few times, and then wait for miracles to happen.
You need to have a strong desire and motivation, and the commitment to do whatever is necessary to achieve your goal.
You need persistence, concentration, the ability to visualize, and at least some degree of self-discipline.
You need to learn to recognize opportunity when it appears, and to be willing and ready to take and use this opportunity.
You need to be willing to act and take the required steps whenever needed, and not just wait for your desires to materialize from thin air or suddenly drop on you from the sky.
In order to take full advantage of the law of attraction you need to know certain rules and follow them. It is true, some people achieve great success, without knowing much or anything about it, but they intuitively use it correctly.
The law of attraction is not a method for getting rich quickly, without doing anything. It requires mental work, focus and visualization, and also the willingness to follow the mental work with any required actions on the physical plane.
This law can manifest your desires in many ways, sometimes obviously and directly, and sometimes in an indirect way, through various steps. Sometimes you might attain your goal in a sudden or miraculous way, and at other times slowly or indirectly, one thing leading to another. People might help you, a new job might come along, an idea might pop up in your mind, or you your intuition might tell you to follow a certain course of action. These are just a few of the many ways, through which this law can help you manifest your desires.

excerpt from http://www.successconsciousness.com

In a world that values who you are by what you look like, it's important to have confidence in yourself. For example, many times we see other women and imagine that there life must be so perfect because of how they look and we become intimidated by what we see. There are even times that we see someone that we just know our mates would go crazy over because of their appearance and then that red eyed demon of insecurity begins to take hold. The antidote to those feelings are confidence. Confidence, like happiness, has to be worked on daily. Just like you have to make a decision to be happy and then put in the work required to FEEL happy; it's the same with confidence. The comedian, Monique, says that as a child she was told daily that she was pretty. So although the world would look at her plus sized figure and say...hmmm...she has the confidence to say..at 200 lbs or 120 lbs I'm a beautiful woman. And she exudes confidence; it's apparent in the way she carries herself. Not just what she says but the non verbal statments she makes. Make it a daily practice to practice confidence. Tell yourself that you are worthy. Those old battle scars from childhood or from whenever that you still wear...you're too fat, too ugly, too skinny, too dumb, not good enough, not pretty enough, not smart enough....work on them each and every day. To each negative remark, counter it with a positive affirmation...I am good enough. I am pretty. I am smart. You will start to wear your confidence like a piece of beautiful clothing and everyone who encounters you will be able to see and feel it. In this world, no matter who you are, confidence is everything!

Greetings all! Please take the opportunity to vote for my girl at this opportunity to win a wedding in the Bahamas. Hit the link below and vote for Bruce and Martina!

Long Distance Goes the Distance Bahamas Bridal Bailout

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There's an amazing rush that happens when I give. It can be my time, my money, a card, a gift or a service that I give. But when I do so I feel joyful. It lights me up because I'm not self absorbed in my life and I'm focusing on bringing pleasure to someone else. Sometimes we tend to think we have nothing to give because our "money may be funny" or we may be tired or the list of excuses that come with participating in life. The thing is to find something/any little thing that lets someone you love or even a stranger know that they are important. Give your time by listening to that same story that you've heard 100 times over; send a $5 gift card to a friend who you know just loves coffee or a particular fast food. Tell someone unexpectedly that you love them. Give from your soul and from your heart. Give without thinking about it. Give generously. The joy you will feel is indescribable....

"Gratitude is a two-fold love - love coming to visit us and love running out to greet a welcome guest. " - henry vandyke

I love my boyfriend and in essence that means I ought to naturally love his children..right? So I thought. After all, as beautiful and wonderful as he is, how could his offspring not be just the same. And as a mother already wouldn't I organically cleave to the little one's he made? Well, automatically...no. I didn't produce them from my body so the instantaneous oxyctocin that was released when I gave birth to my son isn't there. I have to produce it manually. His kids are coming for spring break and I have to admit it's intimitadating and overwhelming all at the same time. I've been around them enough to have a relationship but since I don't see them often I tend to at times feel like that "wicked stepmother." Beautiful children they are..full of life and mischief and all the things that make children..fun! But at times I wonder, will I fall in love with them naturally as we progress in our relationship? Will my heart be as full and hold them the way it holds Yums? Will they ever look at me as a friend and confidant and another adult who loves them? Or will they glare at me scorningly since I'm not their mother? *sigh* I prepare for their arrival, get fun activities in place and hope for a special spring break.

"Happiness is a spiritual path. The more you learn about true happiness, the more you discover the truth of who you are, what is sacred, and what your life is really for. By walking back to happiness—the happiness that exists within you right now—you reaquaint yourself with your true identity, with your true values, and with your true purpose. This inherent happiness holds the key to enlightenment and greater understanding of who you are. In other words, true happiness is Self-realization."

I read this excerpt this morning from Be Happy, release the power of happiness in You by Robert Holden.

Most of my fondest memories involve me dancing in some form or fashion. Kindergarten gave me my first taste of this delightful drug. We had a school program and it involved my class performing to some island music. I don't remember anything but moving my little hips and feeling on top of the world! I had the chance to visit Egypt about 15 years ago with my father and younger sister. We were in the market one day and there was this intoxicating music being played throughout the air. I couldn't help it; again I found myself moving my little hips and laughing and again feeling on top of the world! Dancing brings me joy. From holding Yums (my son) when he was infant close to my heart and lulling him to sleep while moving to Coltrane; to holding someone close while in my pj's and socks rocking in tune to Anita Baker. I don't care what the music is...gospel, jazz, reggae, rock, alternative, neo soul, rap, dirty south...I am moved to move my little hips and take it all in. Dance. When noone is looking and everyone is looking....