Wish Upon a Hero Donations

If you have found my blog from the Wish Upon A Hero website, thank you so much for visiting and welcome. If you want to view my wish, click here. This blog post will also make more sense if you start there first.

 Although I don't get the time to post here as much as I would like, you can learn more about me here and I will also provide a link to Care Chest, the organization that helped me get my accessible van. I didn't have the space on Wish Upon A Hero to explain everything about my van loan so I will add a little more info here.

Care Chest is not a financial institution and does not normally handle the actual loan themselves. But they did arrange for Nevada State Bank to handle my low income loan originally. When I first started making my van payments, I was in a committed, long-term relationship with my daughter's father and so there were two incomes in my home. Unfortunately, he decided to leave the relationship a few years ago. I had to file bankruptcy and surrender my home because I could not afford the mortgage on my own. I was also worried about how I would make my van payments after paying rent, utilities and other necessary living expenses.

Fortunately, I had found a great writing job with a site called LoveToKnow. My background with the home decor business and my knowledge and passion for design and decorating brought me a wonderful opportunity to become a contributing writer on subjects such as interior design, bedding, antiques and furniture. This job was such a blessing because it guaranteed enough money to make my van payment each month. If it had only lasted a little longer, my van would be paid off by now or very close to it.

Care Chest had to actually take my loan over from the bank because I missed a payment or two while going through the evaluation process for my job. I resumed payments until all of us contributing writers at LoveToKnow received the devastating news that the site was losing money because of the Google Panda updates and all work would be stopping while the site went through the process of changing formats. For me, this meant a loss of about $400 a month in income. LoveToKnow did offer to keep me on as a design expert for their new advice format. While I really enjoy giving advice to the people who write in with decorating questions, I only make one fourth of what I was paid to write articles. Unfortunately, it's just not enough.

Since it has been so hard to find another writing job that can guarantee as much work as I had with LoveToKnow, I decided some extra credentials might help me find more work. Because a degree in Interior design is soooo expensive and I'm just not ready to take on 80,000 in student loan debt, I am taking classes on Interior decoration. The schooling is much less expensive and at least I'll get my foot in the door on an industry that I love.

I was hoping that the donations from Wish Upon a Hero could go straight to Care Chest but after submitting my wish request, I discovered it is set up differently. If you are interested in helping me save my wheelchair accessible van, you can always contact Care Chest directly, give them my name, Michelle Radcliff, and ask if they will accept a donation to help me pay down the balance left on my van. I will be contacting them soon myself to inform them about my decision to ask for help.

I have never publicly asked for financial help and this was not an easy thing to do. However, I will so much appreciate the universe,  God, and all others who bring me what I need to continue to have a healthy, happy, joy filled life full of freedom and adventure.

Thank you for reading.

Farewell to Jerry Hicks

I was surprised to learn today about the passing on of Jerry Hicks. I did not know that he had been diagnosed with some form of cancer and had actually passed away on November 18, 2011.

Many times I hear the expression that a person has lost his "battle" with cancer. However, I doubt that Jerry was fighting against this disease because that does not make sense with the philosophy he and his wife, Esther, had so passionately shared with the world. I believe Jerry was probably very much accepting of what he had attracted into his life and where it would ultimately lead him.

I'm sure the skeptics and critics of spiritual philosophies like the Law of Attraction have taken Jerry's physical "death" as an opportunity to say, "See, the Law of Attraction doesn't work because this man, whose life was so centered around this belief system, failed in his attempt to attract perfect health and wellness."

However, Jerry Hicks spent the majority of his life healthy, happy and filled with an insatiable desire to connect with the divinity within himself. As he became more and more enlightened by the relationships he attracted into his physical experience, he also attracted the means to share this wonderful spiritual Enlightenment with millions of people throughout the world. I believe the spirit who resided in this man's physical body had a very precise and powerful purpose for choosing (attracting) the life he lived in this physical realm. Jerry Hicks was and always has been a teacher, a friend and a guide to help other spiritual beings remember who they really are.

Perhaps Jerry chose cancer as a way of showing others that "dying" is not defeat, it is not loss. Jerry Hicks did not lose a battle with cancer because he was never fighting against anything. He was simply floating downstream where his life path had always been taking him, back into the Vortex, back home to Source. Jerry has always been a beacon of light and love and will forever help others find their way.

I would like to thank Jerry and Esther Hicks (and Abraham) for being so instrumental in helping myself and so many others reawaken and connect with the inner beings that we really are. I am positive that Jerry will be there for Esther, everyday for the rest of her physical experience, until the day he welcomes her back home as well. I also believe that now that Jerry is non-physical again, he finally knows exactly how he touched every other spiritual being here on Earth. What intense joy he must be feeling now!

Farewell, Jerry Hicks, on your incredible eternal journey. Thank you for the gift of Enlightenment, which you so generously shared. You are loved.

Remembering to Appreciate

After finishing my second article for The Examiner.com on relationships and how they affect every aspect of our lives, I realize how my relationship with money has actually distracted me from focusing on what I really desire in life. Back in August, I received the devastating news that I was being laid off from my job as a contributing writer for LoveToKnow. It turns out that many loyal writers and editors for this site were let go, without any kind of warning or the courtesy of a "heads up." This has resulted in a loss of about one third of my income. Not only am I unable to make my car payment, any extra spending money is gone as well. It's really hard not to focus on your lack of money when you can't make your bills for the month. This whole recession seems like a vicious cycle, with all the negative news in the media about unemployment and how the economy continues to suffer. With so many minds focusing on these issues, the Law of Attraction is responding, and the universe keeps giving us more of the same. Okay, it's time to regroup. I need to be okay with where I'm at. Everything is fine and I truly appreciate the wonderful job that has come to replace the one that I lost. There is so much abundance in the universe and there is plenty for everyone. I am especially thankful that I was accepted as a Featured Contributor for Yahoo's Associated Content and that I am now the Las Vegas Freethought Examiner at Examiner.com. I will be able to have creative control over the topics I write about here and I can focus on spiritual and self discovery articles. This will help me stay focused on being a deliberate creator. I love that I have found my passion as a writer and that I have the opportunity to expand my career with great opportunities like these. Thank you for taking the time to read my words. Namaste, Michelle

I am thrilled to find this old blog is still here. Today's date is November 10, 2021. It's like a time portal. Maybe I will start posting here again. I've moved on to copywriting and you can find me here:

https://concisecopywriter.com/

Well it's been way too long since my last post. All the way back in August of 2010. Sometimes life has a way of interfering with our passions.

I do a lot of writing but for now it's all focused on my job, writing about interior design, antiques, bedding and furniture. I do like to write about decorating and I am very thankful that I am actually getting paid as a writer. It is tough to keep up with the deadlines, keep up with the almost-but-not- quite teenage daughter that I homeschool, keep up with my website and put up with paralysis. I think it's the last one that gets to me the most. And it definitely slows me down the most.

I'm surprised that I still have any followers here at all. Thank you for not giving up on me. Or just forgetting that you were following me. ;). lol

I almost posted a couple of months ago. January 29, 2011 was a very, very sad day for me. My best friend in the whole world had been diagnosed with congestive heart failure a few months earlier. She was on medication and it seemed to be helping. I had ordered more medication for her online because it was much cheaper than buying through the animal hospital. However, because my best friend's Doctor and the online pharmacy did not communicate well, the medicine I ordered didn't quite make it on time. My little sick friend ran out of her ACE inhibitors over the weekend. She died late Sunday evening. Her medication was in the mailbox Monday morning but it was too late.

I know that death is just a transition. I know that animals have spirit energy just like humans. I know just as sure as there is a soul dwelling within this broken body of mine, that my little Sweetpea had a precious, sweet little soul that loved me as a dearly and passionately as I loved her. I felt that love every morning when she would lay her little body across my face and fore head as I lay in bed. I could hear her sweet little heart beating as she would snuggle her body into my face. It was pure unconditional love. This little dog was more than just family to me. She was truly one of my soulmates.

Even though I know she was suffering and she's in a much better place now, there is still an ache in my heart from just missing her presence. I miss her greeting me at the door when I would come home. I miss her snuggling in bed with me. I miss her riding around on my lap. I miss everything about her.

She has come to visit me several times in my dreams. I appreciate that. I think my cat Shadow misses her too. Shadow has picked up Sweetpea's carrot toy in her mouth on a few occasions and then calls out in her weird meowing way. Shadow used to bathe Sweetpea as if she was her kitten. It's hard to believe Shadow and Sweetpea used to be the same size.

I saw a fascinating episode of a reality TV show called "Pit Boss" recently that made me feel a little better about my own grief for my little friend. The show is about a little person named Shorty, who has a Pit Bull rescue organization in Los Angeles. His organization is run by himself and three other little people.

In this episode, a woman came into the rescue organization, called "Shortywood Productions", to adopt a puppy. She had a rather strange request, though. She asked Shorty if he would bring some of his dogs to her home and attend a seance, led by a psychic medium who could sense and communicate with animal spirits.

The reason for the seance was to try to communicate with this woman's beloved dog, who she had for 13 years. The dog had been dead for about a year and the woman was ready to adopt another dog. However, she wanted to make sure it was okay with her deceased dog.

Of course, Shorty and his crew were skeptical, to say the least. Psychic mediums who talk to dead people are one thing. Psychic mediums who talk to dead dogs-- even more of a stretch for most people. However, because Shorty is dedicated to finding homes for needy Pit Bulls, he agreed. So Shorty, two of his personal Pit Bull dogs and a couple of his rescue workers went to the seance.

I know a lot of reality TV shows are staged. However, by the looks on Ashley's face ( one of Shorty's rescue workers), Sebastian's face ( another rescue worker) and the woman's face trying to contact her deceased dog, it genuinely looked like these people were shocked and slightly amazed.

As the medium begin talking to the woman, she suddenly asked her a very odd and very personal question. The medium asked if the woman had ever had a miscarriage. the woman replied she did indeed have a miscarriage. The medium then told the woman that she had been carrying twins, a boy and a girl.

Not only was this information a surprise to everybody, something else unusual happened. Shorty's dog, Hercules, who never leaves Shorty's side, had been sleeping on the couch, next to Shorty. The dog suddenly got up off the couch and walked over to where the psychic medium was sitting. The dog then laid down next to her.

Apparently, this is highly unusual behavior for this dog. The rescue workers were shocked because Hercules never leaves Shorty's side. The medium said the dog could sense the energy coming through and that's why he got up to get closer to it.

The medium also told the woman that her deceased dog was with her two twins. She told the woman if she could finally let go of the dog that he could go into the light and finally move on. So that is what happened. And yes, the spirit dog felt fine about the woman adopting a new puppy. It makes sense, most dogs are welcoming of new members to their pack.

Now I wish I knew a medium like that. If the information she shared was true and this was not all staged by the show, she seems like the real deal. I know some people that read this will laugh and think I'm naive. That's okay. I do believe there are real mediums. And I know some people can totally communicate with animals through energy. Just watch the Dog Whisperer. People are blown away by how he (Cesar Milan) communicates with dogs. He's using energy. I think it is similar to how psychic mediums communicate with spirits, through energy.

I guess this post has gone on long enough. Maybe I'll meet someone someday that can tell me where Sweetpea is and how she's doing. I wonder if she thinks about me as often as I think about her.

Replacing My Guilt With Appreciation

After looking over several of my previous posts, I started to notice a pattern. I seem to be apologizing to myself (because this blog is for myself as much as it is an outlet to share my insights and experiences with others) and to my readers (if anyone really is reading) for taking such long intervals between posting.

I realize there is no need to do this. My posts have been few, not because I'm lazy or because I'm not passionate about my spiritual journey. I don't post as much as I would like because I run a retail business by myself, I'm a single, disabled mom and I recently found a new job as a freelance writer. (now I'm making excuses, LOL) I am absolutely blessed because I have so much keeping me busy and I love my work. I am now a paid author and that feels incredible!

I am a contributing writer for LoveToKnow. It's a large website full of information about dozens of topics. I mainly write articles for the Home, Garden & Events channel, in categories such as Interior Design, Antiques, Bedding and Linens and Furniture. I also applied to write for their Paranormal category. I was fortunate to be given two article assignments during my training period to write about Ouija Boards. I have never had the opportunity to use one, so I had to do a lot of research on the subject to write the articles. I not only get the opportunity to educate myself on new subjects by researching and writing articles, I also get to work with some great editors who are helping me become a better writer. What a wonderful thing the Universe has brought me! While I do enjoy writing about interior design and decorating, my ultimate desire is to write on spiritual philosophy, metaphysics, self improvement (awakening), self healing and the paranormal.

Today, I am taking a break from work (shh...don't tell anyone ;) to browse through my favorite blogs and websites on spiritual news and philosophy. It's easy to get stuck in a rut of "reality" (yes, I use that term loosely, a better word would be distractions). I'm needing a big dose of positive energy and that comes easily from reading the amazing thoughts of others who are in alignment with their Source and sharing their enlightenment through their words. I feel like expressing my appreciation and gratitude for all that share their light on this amazing manifestation called the Internet.

I will hopefully be doing an article on psychic healing on LoveToKnow in the near future. I will be sure to post a link to it here when it's published. Here are the links to my articles on Ouija Boards. I know they are a controversial subject but having no personal experience with one myself, I was able to write about them objectively and without bias either way. If you have an experience or opinion you would like to share on the articles or Ouija Boards, feel free to leave a comment here or after the articles. Please be honest but also be courteous.

Ouija Board Seance

Free Ouija Board Readings

Now I'm off to share some comment love and appreciation. Have an amazing, fantastic, joyous life! :):)

Michelle

I'm Back...And Talking About Energy Healing

It's been awhile since my last post. Much longer than I intended to go. It's not because I haven't been writing, I've actually been so busy writing that my personal blog has been neglected. The only good thing about that is my aspirations of becoming a professional author are coming true. I'm taking baby steps but it looks like I may have secured a job as a freelance writer. And one of the subjects I will be writing about deals with the paranormal. Woo-hoo! I will actually get paid to write about a subject I love. Unfortunately, the website I'm writing for doesn't have a category on Spirituality. I'm hoping if things work out well, eventually I could get them to add this because I'm certain it would attract a lot of new readers. I will be posting more about this later to keep my beloved 10,000 followers (minus three zeros) updated.

Yes, I need more followers. If the universe brought you here, please follow me. I will return the favor. I know it's a bit desperate sounding but it never hurts to ask, right?

Some of the main reasons for starting this blog was to share myself with anyone willing to read it, to network with like-minded people and hopefully inspire others as I learn more about myself and my spiritual awakening.

OK, switching gears now. I recently watched a really cool show on the Biography channel about psychic healing. It featured a man named Dean Kraft. He is an energy healer. What sets Dean apart from most energy healers is his amazing success rate. He is the most medically and scientifically documented healer, using a laying on of hands technique to help people use their own mind's energy to heal themselves. I need to find a way to meet this man.

I am so excited when I come across stories like Dean's. I know the mind (thoughts, visualization, belief) has the power to heal the body in miraculous ways. It just really helps to reinforce the belief I now have when I see proof.

Since I just found Dean Kraft's website, I am going to spend some time learning more about energy healing. I will be back soon to post more about this fascinating subject. My ultimate dream would be to heal myself and then help others do the same thing. But I think I need some sleep first.

Astral Projection

During my recent move, I found a set of Time-Life books I had bought close to twenty years ago called Mysteries of the Unknown. I had forgotten all about them and so it was a treat to find them. The series covers many subjects on the paranormal. Unfortunately, I only have 6 of them and there are 33 in the series. If anyone knows how I could get the rest, feel free to leave me a comment.

In one of the books titled "Psychic Voyages", there is a lot of information about astral projection. While I have heard the term before, I didn't know much about the subject. Now that I understand what it is and how people do it, it is something that intrigues me very much. I've been stuck in a paralyzed body for 25 years. I'm way overdue for a vacation.

I know there are some people who fear this concept because they believe demons or evil spirits could enter or posses their physical body while they are out. But I don't think this is very likely, especially in my case. It would take a fairly stupid demon to trap itself in a physical body that doesn't work too well. ;)

I believe I was having an out of body experience the night of my accident. The car I was riding in had rolled and my neck was broken when the roof of the car came down on my head. Someone had pulled me out of the car and as I lay on the ground, flat on my back, I began to feel my legs start to float up in the air. It felt as if I was being pulled out of my body by my feet. This terrified me because I thought if I left my body, that was it, I would surely die. So I fought the floating sensation with everything I had, even begging my friends to put my legs back on the ground. Of course this confused them a great deal because they could see my legs were already on the ground. They couldn't see what I could feel and I clearly felt my legs floating upwards as if they had been filled with helium.

Now I would very much like to learn how to astral project. It certainly doesn't sound easy, but what a rewarding experience this would be for me. The hardest part might be actually coming back into this prison of a body. Its not that I don't love and appreciate my physical body because I do. I just need my freedom.

In addition to the concept of astral projection, I'm also open to the concept of self healing. Miraculous healing happens around us all the time but we often don't really pay attention to it. Can the body really heal itself from any injury? Wouldn't a person have to totally believe in this in order for it to happen? Yes, the belief would be essential. If the energy of our thoughts really does affect matter then anything is possible. Everything is possible. Impossible becomes possible.

I need to go and really wrap my head around this. Any thoughts on the subject of astral projection, out of body experiences or self healing would be greatly appreciated.

Namaste,
Michelle

(The beautiful surreal artwork at the top of this post is by artist Brian Exton. )

Enjoy The Journey Of Evolution

I just read a great article on Spirit News Daily entitled Conscious Evolution. It states how we continue to evolve in our concept of God and prayer, the way we communicate and experience the divine. The author also talks about Ernest Holmes, who states "God is not a becoming God. God is not an evolving God. God is that which was, is and will remain perfect, complete, happy and harmonious." In other words, it is we who are evolving, not God.

But, if we are truly extensions of this Source energy, this eternal living universal consciousness we call God, then God is evolving because God is in all of us. If we are truly one conscious stream of intelligent energy, we cannot truly be separate from God, nor can God be separate from us.

How do you think the human race is evolving? From one perspective, it could be said that the human race is getting out of hand. There is still so much violence, anger, ignorance, greed and intolerance. We continue to destroy forests, we continue to consume fossil fuels, we continue to pollute the environment, despite indisputable evidence of the danger this poses to our entire planet. Humans can almost be compared to a virus, an organism that takes so much from its host that it eventually destroys it.

From another perspective, the human race really does seem to be evolving at an incredible pace. We seem to be making leaps and bounds in technology and science, especially in the last one hundred years. Efforts to protect the environment and begin to reverse some of the damage we've caused to the planet over the last hundred years are growing. We are becoming much more tolerant of the differences between us and there seems to be a widespread effort of acceptance. Many people now seem to be turning more toward spirituality instead of religion.

Life cannot exist without change. The universe and everything in it will continue to expand and evolve. I have felt this expansion and evolution within myself. I could not find any religion that really rang true to me, that just felt right. But I've always known there is more to life than just this so called reality that we're living. I've always felt that there are incredible and amazing mysteries out there that are just waiting to be discovered and understood. Or maybe even remembered. This is where my spiritual path is taking me. Something deep inside me, the part directly connected to the universal Source energy that flows through me, is directing me where to go and attracting the knowledge that I'm seeking to me. So I'm just now discovering how to enjoy the journey.

And My Faith In HuMANity Is Restored

Its so nice to know that there are still honest people in the world. This was shown to me in tough economic times and in an even tougher city.

If you were to leave a wallet laying on the floor in a Las Vegas gas station full of debit and credit cards and about $40.00 in cash, what do you think the odds are that you could come back in half an hour and recover it with everything intact? I'm not much of a gambling person myself but I would think that the odds of a full recovery would not be favorable at all. I doubt that very many people would be willing to offer their wallet to test this scenario, myself included. But, unknowingly, this is exactly what I did last Sunday afternoon. While in the checkout line at a local Shell station, my wallet had fallen out of my purse. It was discovered shortly after we had left town. We were pulling up to the fee area at Lake Mead and I was looking for my wallet to get my Golden Access card out.

After a quick check of the van, I realized it was definitely gone. I knew the only place it could be was back at the gas station. My heart sank as I thought of the endless stream of people that go in and out of a place like that all day. Money is tight for everyone right now, not to mention I live in Las Vegas, which needs no further explanation.

So instead of panicking and letting all of the worst case scenarios enter my thoughts, I made the instant choice to remain calm and just believe that an honest person had noticed the wallet and did exactly what I would have done, turn it in to the cashier so the rightful owner could come back to claim it. My ID was also in the wallet but because I have recently moved, it still has my old address. So I did not entertain the thought of someone trying to mail it back to me. The logical thing an honest person would do is give it to the cashier because most people will come back to the last place they visited when losing a wallet. So I calmly kept this thought going in my mind as we drove back into town. In the past, I would have been freaking out the entire drive back, imagining all kinds of horrible people happily taking everything I have. Its good when you have studied the Law of Attraction and realize how important and powerful your thoughts are.

Sure enough, when we returned to the Shell station, the nice young man that had checked us out before was waiting for us to come back for the wallet. He had noticed it lying on the floor after we had left. Everything was still in the wallet, including the cash.

The more we believe in and appreciate the good in people around us, the more good people we attract into our experience.

Starting Over

It's been awhile since my last post. Moving out of a home you've lived in for the last ten years is a daunting task. It's amazing how much junk you accumulate over the years. One of the advantages of moving is that you get a chance to start over in a new place and let go of all that stuff that was just taking up space. I have to let a lot of things go, there's not much choice when you're going from a 4 bedroom house to a 3 bedroom apartment.

I'm finding it much easier to let go of stuff but its not so easy when it comes to feelings. How long does the pain of losing someone you love stick around? As long as you allow it to hurt. I know Abraham says that we create our own reality through the thoughts we think and the emotions we feel. I suppose I'm holding myself in a vibration of heartache. Its hard to let go of those feelings for someone when you still have to see them everyday.

And these social networking sites that everyone are so crazy about definitely have a negative impact on people's lives when they become the catalyst for destroying or damaging relationships. Facebook played a significant role in causing my 15 year relationship to end in such a painful way. You have to take a deep breath when you see the woman who literally pulled the rug out from under you without so much as batting an eye, gloating about it on the internet.

I can't understand how or why some women can engage in relationships with men who are cheating on wives or girlfriends. Why would you want to put another woman who has done nothing to you through that? And how can you have any respect for or trust a man who would do that? What makes these type of women so sure that their cheating men won't turn around and do it to them in the future?

As bad as my experience has been over this last year, I have come away from it knowing these things for certain. I will never, ever knowingly engage in a relationship with a man who has a wife or girlfriend. I would never want to put any woman through what I just went through, especially if children are involved. I know most people don't have much empathy for celebrities, but I really feel for women like Sandra Bullock who have to go through this humiliating, heartbreak publicly. I think what hurts even more than losing your lover is losing your best friend. Lovers come and go but when you think you have found your true soul mate and he then shatters that dream, where do you go from there? Call me, Sandy, let's do lunch.

What I must do now is work on myself. I want to find my own sense of peace somehow. I need to let go of any feelings of betrayal or injustice and let karma take care of whatever needs it. I took my daughter to the pool today and as I sat in the warm rays of the sun's energy rereading "Ask And It Is Given", Abraham was saying the best way to take your attention and focus off of something you don't want is to redirect your attention and focus to something else. Brilliant and simple. I need to focus on healing, allowing the stream of Well Being to flow into my body, mind and spirit. I want to love myself more than I have ever loved myself before. I am realizing now that during my relationship, I was allowing myself to be extremely mistreated because of my own insecurities. I was not loving myself at all and therefore, not allowing anyone else to truly love me the way that I deserve to be loved. I am worthy of commitment, I am worthy of being treated as an equal, I am worthy of real love.

Plant A Tree By Posting Your Thoughts About Carbon Neutral Blogs

I just wrote the following post on my home decorating blog. As far as I can tell, this is a legitimate cause. I wanted to participate because I love trees. I am so blessed to be moving into an apartment that is surrounded by many big beautiful trees. I'm moving this week and look forward to posting pictures of my new place. Meanwhile, enjoy reading about this cool initiative and post about it yourself!

Do blogs grow on trees? My educated guess would be no, as I've never heard of a blog tree. But it now seems that blogs can help plant trees. So let's talk about outdoor decorating, mother nature style. Help us decorate a forest with more trees!

I recently received an email from a German organization called kaufDA, asking me to participate in an initiative that helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions by planting a tree for every blog that posts about it. I do get a lot of scam emails so I did a little research before starting this post. Thanks to the tireless efforts of blog owners like RecycleBills.com, who wrote many emails requesting verification of this organization's claims before joining the bandwagon, I feel safe in joining the cause. Anything that can positively affect the environment is worthwhile to me.

KaufDA's plan is to plant these blog-supported trees in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California with the help of the Arbor Day Foundation. You can read more about why this Californian forest needs help and joining the cause by visiting http://www.kaufda.de/umwelt/co2-neutral/my-blog-is-carbon-neutral/.

The German organization's site claims that planting one tree for your blog will neutralise its carbon footprint for the next 50 years. Whether this is a scientific fact or not, I am certain that every tree that gets planted is more than worth the effort of writing about it.

Recommended Reading: "Think And Grow Rich"

I have heard about Napoleon Hill's book "Think And Grow Rich" as it is mentioned by Jerry Hicks in the forward he wrote for "Money and The Law of Attraction." I was recently browsing on the web when I came across a free copy of "Think And Grow Rich" as a downloadable ebook. So I downloaded my free copy and have started to read it. What struck me first is the similarity of the state of the world when this book was first published, 1937, to how it is now. Napoleon makes many references to the economic collapse of the Great Depression and how times were about to change, how a new race was about to be run in the new changed world and how the world would demand new ideas, new inventions, new leaders, new books, new features and ideas in radio and moving pictures. He knew out of the incredible suffering and hardship that society had just experienced, the opportunity for new desires, ideas and success was about to explode and he couldn't have been more right!

So here we are again, in an economic crisis that has not been experienced at such a level since the Great Depression. Along with the economy, our world also faces a rapidly changing environment. Not from the natural cycles of environmental changes the world has experienced through the ages, but from the explosion of population and technology. Our climate is changing at such a staggering rate, we have already entered into uncharted territory. Once again, we need new ideas, new ways of thinking, new types of leaders, new types of technologies. I feel like the world as we know it is about to change. A shift is coming, it needs to happen because to continue along the same path would eventually lead to stagnation, to destruction, to death. Life is always about changing, about growing, about evolving. Since there is no true death, there can only be change.

Napoleon Hill was asked by Andrew Carnegie to interview 500 of the wealthiest and most successful men of the era, a task which took Hill over 20 years to complete. Mr. Carnegie knew Napoleon would uncover the secret that these people were using to acheive their fortunes and success. Once again, it has to do with the incredible power source within all of us, our conscious thoughts. The more knowledge we acquire from education, experience and a connection to Source energy, combined with desire and belief, provides us with unlimited potential for creating
everything imaginable.

I am grateful for the LOA, which enabled me to attract this book into my experience. It wouldn't have been something I would be looking for on my next visit to the bookstore and I would have missed out on some fascinating reading. I haven't read it all yet, so I'm off to read more!

Flowing Downstream Feels Sooo Good

My last post was definitely a good outlet for me. When I begin a post, I have an idea about what I'm going to write about but as my thoughts flow, where I end is sometimes a surprise as one thought attracts another. My intent is always the same. Even if I begin talking about challenges or hardships that I'm experiencing, the point is not to dwell on or focus on the negative. Writing about it is therapy for me as it helps me figure out why these things are manifesting in my experience, which helps lead me to how or what can I do to change it. So the end result is that I have managed to find better feeling thoughts, to feel better than I did when I first started to write.

So when I realized my heartache and grief over my relationship was bringing me more unwanted experiences and that it was quickly snowballing into one big unhappy mess, I made a conscious effort to catch myself the moment I had a thought that would bring those feelings on. I would then think about something I could be grateful for. I would think about all the love still present in my life and the inspirational people I've had the pleasure of meeting. While there have been a few rocks (hard spots) I've bumped into, I've allowed myself to roll over them and keep going downstream.

Yesterday was a day of heavy rain, part of a 4 day rainy weather event that is such a treat for us living in the desert. It also was a day that the floodgates of good news seemed to open up for me. It started with letters in the mail stating that my daughter and I have been approved for some programs I had applied for almost 2 months ago. My assistant-in-training called to say she had passed the driving test she needed to take to get her learner's permit. An important first step in getting her driver's license which she will need to be able to help me get around. I had a phone interview with a local agency I had contacted to possibly help me with a bathroom modification since I have been unable to find the shower I need in a 3 bedroom apartment. The news they gave me was better than what I was asking for. There is a new piece of adaptive equipment available that was developed in New Zealand that eliminates the need for expensive bathroom modifications for wheelchair users. This ingenious device will allow me to use a bathtub easily, with no risk of injury to me or my assistant. The cost of this device will be 100% covered for me and unlike a standard structural modification, I can take this with me wherever I choose to live.

I can't even describe the relief and joy I felt. I didn't even know such a thing existed. It opens up a whole new world of freedom to me because now I can live in literally hundreds of places that have bathtubs instead of walk-in or roll-in showers. I would like to hug and kiss whoever was responsible for the invention of this blessed product, whether its one person or a team of people, thank you, thank you, thank you! I am so grateful for what the Universe/Source/God has provided for myself and others to make life easier. Wow, 01/21/10 was a wonderful day for me!! Its like the rain came and washed a huge worry away, leaving me refreshed, relaxed and rejuvenated.

I still have some more hurdles to cross before I can relocate, settle in and begin my new life. But I finally feel a good downstream current at my back.

Starting off Upstream, Need to Turn This Boat Around

I can’t say that 2010 has started off with a bang. I am a couple of months away from moving out of my house (a nice way of putting I’m losing my home). While change is good, getting a fresh start, it doesn’t mean that its easy. Finding an accessible, affordable 3 bedroom apartment has turned into more of a challenge than I expected it to be. The companies that build apartment complexes and think they are making the handicapped units “accessible” need to be getting more advise from wheelchair users. They think making a wider doorway and installing some grab bars around the bathtub is all they need to do, when actually they should be installing roll-in showers.
And the few places that do have roll-in showers only offer them in 1 or 2 bedroom apartments. So if you’re disabled and have kids, this becomes a real problem.

I wish I could say this was the only problem. However, right before Christmas a pipe broke under my kitchen floor, underneath the foundation of the house. Yes, about a $1200 plumbing job. So we have to keep the water to my house turned off at the street unless we’re showering or doing laundry. I wish I could say that was the only problem with my house. New Year’s Day my central heating stopped working. Good thing I live in Las Vegas but it still gets cold here in the winter. All of this while I’m trying to save money to move in a couple of months.

Its hard to understand how things keep unraveling when I thought I was staying optimistic. But underneath, it’s the separation I’m going through, the emotional pain that runs deep. I haven’t been very successful at keeping my vibration high with good feeling thoughts. I didn’t focus on having my house fall apart. But it finally occurred to me, maybe a broken heart vibration is attracting some of the negative chaos going on around me. It makes sense because I find myself thinking thoughts about this break up and they just start escalating until I feel physical pain inside. This leads to depression, despair, feeling helpless and lots of crying. I need to stop this before I collapse my roof! :)

I need to remember who I really am. I am a deliberate creator. I need to catch myself when I start that downward spiral. Reach for better feeling thoughts. I can’t tune into the frequency of the things I desire in life when I keep myself tuned into what’s making me miserable. That just makes sense. The message that the most important thing is that I feel good has been popping up every time I read or listen to spiritual messages. Its time to pay attention and realign.

Alignment of Energy For 2010

Wow, 2009 was a year of extreme contrast for me. In one perspective, it was more challenging than any other year of my life besides 1985 (the year I broke my neck). It has been a year of heartache, loss and extreme financial hardship. But in another perspective it has been a year of profound spiritual awakening. It has been a complete life changing transformation. I have attracted knowledge and people into my life this year that has me looking at and experiencing life in a whole new way.

I have a renewed sense of hope and passion for life. This comes from the spiritual teachings from many different sources that have reminded me of who I really am. I am an eternal being that came from the non-physical Source of All-That-Is, into this physical time-space reality. I came forth from my Source to experience the contrast of this life and to expand, evolve and enjoy the journey.

It has been a lot to absorb over the past year. sometimes it can be very difficult to find the joy in the journey, in the experience when you're completely out of alignment with that Source energy, your Inner Being. I've gone through most of my adult life with this misalignment and not even being aware of it. My desires and my beliefs just did not match up vibrationally. I had no idea of the concept that my thoughts and beliefs could actually affect my reality. I had no idea that I have so much power over my own life experiences. In fact, living all these years with paralysis has left me feeling very powerless, very vulnerable.

I am so grateful for the knowledge (the remembering) that as an extension of Source energy (being one with God, All-That-Is), I am the one person who can control my experience. When I have a desire, I simply need to focus on bringing my belief into vibrational alignment with that desire so that Source can bring about the actual manifestation of my desire. Without the right alignment of energies, desires or wants just attract more of the same. The universe will keep bringing you the wanting that you're vibrationally aligned with. It is the alignment with the belief regarding a desire that manifests it into reality.

So I will go into this new year for the first time in my life (this physical life) as a deliberate creator. I will be aware of how powerful my thoughts and beliefs are and how much they influence my reality. I will work on aligning my desires with my beliefs and aligning myself with my Source. I believe there is a global shift in consciousness happening. Some say the veil is thinning. I believe more of us are remembering Who We Really Are, realizing the divinity within us, that we truly are all connected as one.

Choosing vs Wanting

I am just starting to really understand and get the concept of letting go of want. All my life I have been used to wanting things, I want that shirt, I want that car, I want to travel, I want to have fun. And of course, after my accident, the only thing I really wanted was to walk again. I want control of my body back, I want to feel "normal" again, I want my freedom!

Recently, this "wanting" has been brought to my attention by several different spiritual sources. The amazing thing is that it has mostly been within the last week. I love it when the universe, the Law Of Attraction, Source, God, The Force (a little George Lucas humor), brings me the truth through so many different channels because it helps me absorb the information better when I hear or read it from different messengers.

So what I'm beginning to understand is that the wanting of these things is what's getting in the way of actually having them. It makes sense with the Law Of Attraction, if you're wanting and you're wanting and you're wanting, then your vibrational frequency is going to be one of wanting and the universe will keep bringing you more of that. How many of us are a perfect vibrational match for wanting? Everybody wants something, right?

I don't want to keep wanting and never actually get what I want. So from now on I will choose things instead of wanting them. I choose to be financially secure. I choose to have friends. I choose to be healthy. I choose to be happy. I choose to help others. I choose to manifest miracles. I choose freedom. I choose love.

How Do We Create With Thought

Anyone who understands the Law of Attraction knows that which is like unto itself is drawn. Like attracts like, so focusing your thoughts on things you want will attract more thoughts like this, helping you to align your point of attraction to that which you desire. To manifest your desires into reality, the vibrational frequencies must match. But have you ever wondered how thoughts actually become things of creation in our physical world?

Neale Donald Walsch has some fascinating insight on this in his dialogue with God, or Source energy, in book one of his Conversations With God series. He describes thought as pure energy, which upon leaving your being, heads out into the universe, extending forever. These thoughts congeal, meeting other thoughts that are alike, creating an incredibly complex maze of energy. Like energy keeps attracting like energy which forms "clumps" of energy. Eventually, when mass amounts of these energy clumps stick to each other, matter begins to form, literally out of pure energy. Matter remains in its physical state until it is disrupted by an opposing or dissimilar form of energy. The dissimilar energy acting upon the matter dismembers it, releasing the raw energy that the matter was made of.

It is truly amazing when you break it down like this. Thoughts are like little electrical sparks in our minds. This energy travels through our nerves giving life and power to our muscles, enabling us to move. I wonder how many other thoughts we fire off each day, all this enormous amout of energy flowing out of us in a constant stream. If you could actually see this energy, we would probably look like a chunk of dry ice in a punch bowl but instead of smoke it would look like streams of colorful light rays shooting out of our heads. The atmosphere must be filled with all this thought energy!

This is probably what hits you when you walk into a room and instantly feel a bad or creepy "vibe." A conglomeration of negative thoughts that have attracted each other. If mass amounts of negative energy clump together, well that's probably not a good place to be.

On the other hand, this is the power of prayer. The more people can come together with like-minded, positive thought energy, the greater the chance to manifest miracles. With a massive shift in conciousness, we could truly come together to better our world. This would be a huge leap in our evolution. Imagine the power of co-creating through love instead of fear.

Check Out TheManifest-Station.com

A new website had it's big relaunch a couple of days ago on Nov. 18, 2009. TheManifest-Station.com was created as a free spiritual resource that features some of the world's leading visionaries, including Neale Donald Walsch, Eckhart Tolle, Dr. Deepak Chopra and many more. Here you can network with like-minded people and have access to life changing and thought provoking videos, articles, movies, seminars and workshops. I joined a few days ago and look forward to all the new spiritual knowledge and networking opportunities this site will provide.

I recently finished book 1 in the "Conversations With God" series by Neale Donald Walsch. I loved it and am currently reading book 2. To say it is thought provoking would be putting it mildly. For me it is mind expanding and causes you to look at many things in life from a completely different perspective. Looking at something from different angles, different perspectives, helps to build a better understanding. I am so grateful everyday for any new spiritual knowledge that I attract into my experience because right now the challenges just keep coming.

I'm off now to explore more of TheManifest-Station. After that, I'll absorb more conversation between God and Neale. This is my Friday night.

Namaste,
Michelle

Manifestation, The Result Of A Focused Desire

I just began reading the first book in the "Conversations With God" series by Neale Donald Walsch. I love what my seeking of the truth is attracting into my experience, whether I make a trip to the library, the bookstore or searching on the Internet. God/Source/The Universe is bringing me everything I'm searching for and this journey of knowledge, of remembering Who I Really Am is so exhilarating, so absolutely awesome, its hard to put into words. I can finally think about life and get excited, get enthusiastic again, even in one of the most challenging times of my life. I am so grateful to God and to the wonderful souls (both physical and non-physical) who are out there brave enough to share this truth with the world, with those who are seeking it, despite the resistance and criticism from people too afraid to open their minds and hearts to other possible paths to God.

I also was able to witness first hand this week, the amazing results of a manifested desire. For the past couple of months, my 11 year old daughter has been badgering me for a new pet. It's not like she doesn't have any. Currently we have 2 cats, 2 Chihuahua's, 1 Lab mix, a turtle and a toad. I've been telling my daughter no, absolutely no more animals because we will be moving from a house to an apartment in a few months, not to mention becoming a single parent. As it is, I will be narrowing this pack down by giving up 2 of the dogs. However, none of this had much of an impact on my daughter's desire for another creature to share our home. She just kept on about it, even offering to pay with birthday and allowance money. Still the answer was no. She even went so far as to write a note about getting a new pet and leaving it under a rock in our yard, a secret wish to any fairies possibly living nearby that could help grant her wish. The note vanished, mysteriously (no, not by me.)

A few days ago, I heard my daughter's father pull up in the driveway, so I went outside to ask him something. He was just getting out of his car. As I was talking to him, something caught my eye. I looked past him and sitting on the roof of his car was a small, bright green, parrot-looking bird.

At first I thought it was a fake bird he had stuck to the top of his car for some reason. I was about to ask why he had this thing on his car when it moved and I realized this was a real bird! He quickly took a picture of it. I think we were both expecting it to fly away. But as we got closer, it was obvious that the bird could only fly in short spurts and seemed to be lost, looking for and wanting help from us.

My daughter and I were able to lure the bird into a cardboard box using a piece of bread. Now what? I knew none of my close neighbors had a bird. I knew I couldn't keep this bird in a box for very long. So we went to the local Petsmart for advice and supplies.

Turns out we've adopted an African Lovebird. So far no one has come looking and there have been no flyers or posters around the neighborhood for a lost bird. Even if he is an escaped pet, the fact that he showed up in our yard, just feet away from where my daughter left her note, is nothing short of miraculous. I've lived here for 10 years and have never seen or heard of a bird like this living around here. And where was it before landing on top of the car which had just pulled up? No idea. I just know that this time last week, I could not have imagined there would be a birdcage sitting in my livingroom! I guess I underestimated the power of an 11 year old's thoughts.

Seeing The World Through The Eyes Of Source

Today was one of those absolutely perfect days. After a week of volatile, windy weather and a 30 degree plunge in temperature, the weather today was a refreshing change of beautiful fall sunshine filtering through quiet, still air. I sat outside this afternoon, absorbing the wonderful warm energy of the sun, reading Abraham and listening to the sounds of neighborhood kids laughing as they played. My best friend Sweetpea, (the small black and white Chihuahua pictured in the post below) was laying in the yard under our big tree, enjoying the beautiful day with me.

Her cute little nose was busily sniffing the delicious smells silently and invisibly flowing through the atmosphere. I had a moment to reflect on those odors, which were otherwise non existent to my human senses, that she seemed to be so thoroughly enjoying. I only became aware of these odors by observing my dog's twitching nose. And it suddenly made me realize our reality is based on those vibrations that we are able to observe with our physical senses through seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, tasting. But there is so much more going on around us that our human senses miss.

As I was thinking about how much of the world going on around us there really is that we're not aware of because its "under the radar" of what our human bodies are capable of interpreting, I was struck by what I was reading from Abraham. It was about being in a state of appreciation. Being totally tuned in, tapped in and turned on. When you're observing things in a state of appreciation, you're seeing the world through the eyes of Source. It's finding the alignment with you're Inner Being, which is the part of you directly connected with Source, the part of you that is Source.

When you see things in a state of appreciation, you become more aware, more tuned in to whatever you're experiencing. I realized why everything seemed so crisp, so wonderful, so alive about the world I was experiencing in my front yard today. I was appreciating the life giving energy of our sun, energy that sustains every living cell on this planet. I was appreciating the air I was breathing into my lungs, how clean it smelled. I was appreciating how still the air itself was, one of those rare moments when there is not even the slightest hint of a breeze. I was appreciating how clearly sound vibrations travel through such still air. And looking at one of the cutest creatures on Earth, lounging under a beautiful Mulberry tree, I appreciated the amazing sensitivity of a dog's nose, which had made me aware of everything else around me that I couldn't see, hear, touch, taste or smell but exists, nonetheless.