Our trip to the nature center

                  

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Sometimes a Little Props are Necessary

This morning I had a bunch of tests to do at the hospital.  Before I left I beckoned my angels and spirit guides to be with me every step of the way.  To be with my on my way there, while I was getting these tests (nothing serious) and then again on the way home.  I got to the hospital and noticed there were quite a lot of people, but I knew that I had nothing to be concerned about because I knew I had heavenly help on my side.

Being that I had never had test there before I asked the lady at the front desk where I should go.  She instructed me to get in line at booth four, so that is what I did, with a smile on my face.

It wasn’t about a minute later when this same lady peaked her head around the partition and called me over.  She asked me my name and then ran over and got my file.  She checked me in and I was on my way.  I had an EKG, chest x-ray, and blood work done, all in less than forty minutes.  Everyone was so nice.  There were so many people there but I seemed to get in and out with ease.

I need thank my angels and spirit guides for being with me throughout the whole experience and making it a wonderful experience to boot.  Who would ever think that having medical tests could be so enjoyable.

With Love,

Michele ❤

Waking up in Northern NY

Where Do You Fit In?

Last night the sweetest husband in the world got a gig for Friday night for a couple of hours.  For those of you who don’t know what Roger does, he is a drummer.  He has retired so many times over the years, and yet again he is coming out of retirement to play to do this gig.

I was first attracted to Roger because of his talent.  I just love artists of all kinds.  I am drawn to their creativity, however, I am simply not into the bar scene anymore.  I dread this gig because I know he wants me to go.  In an earlier post I exclaimed how I only do what I want to do these days, but I guess that is not entirely true.  There are times I still do things I don’t want to do to make the people I love happy.

This is different from being the people pleaser I used to be.  I spent so many years of my life not really knowing who I was.  I always went along with whatever everyone wanted.  I didn’t even think for myself.  I carried the thoughts and beliefs of the people I most wanted to fit in with.

I remember shortly after I began my meditation practice when I became more in touch with who I truly am.  I was shocked to find out who I was, or lack there of.  I realized that I literally had no identity.  I had no idea even what I liked or didn’t like,  My identity was a little bit of this, from one person and a little bit of that, from another.  It took several years of writing to finally figure out who I am, and guess what?  I am a pretty terrific person.  Shocker……  I actually love me.

It turns out, I am a little kooky, but I’m fun.  I have some way out beliefs that most of my friends and family don’t get and that’s OK.  I don’t have to be like everyone else to fit in.  I have found that people like me in spite of my wackiness.  If I am to be completely honest, I am not one of those people who even wants to sit in the shadows.  I want to be out front, standing up for myself and for what I believe.  

That been said, let’s all stand out today.  Let’s show the world that we are not part of the cookie cutter mold that some believe they need to be.

We are one of a kind, baby.  Let’s start acting like it.

Many Blessings

❤ Michele

Waking up in Northern NY

The Stuff My Brain Thinks

Last night I had a hunch that it was time to start looking into creating a real website for my blog so that I can add other aspects to it as I grow.  It’s time to move forward, I got the message loud and clear.  Thankfully I have the greatest teacher guides, they are always there to give me the exact information I need, when I need it, so I am not worried one bit.

I know that I will be able to build a handsome website, that will give me the opportunity to spread my message.  It’s funny because since getting the vibe that it was time to get a website up and moving, I have been thinking a lot about the name of this one, Stuff My Brain Thinks.  When I named this blog several years ago it was just after the worst depression of my life, which was also the biggest blessing of my life because it made way for my awakening.

I called it stuff my brain thinks because at the time I suddenly became aware of all of the garbage that was going on inside of my head.  The worst of the worst, I tell you.  It was no wonder I was looking for a way out.  Anyway, since this time I have spent a lot of time writing.

Every time a thought or emotion would come up I would write it down and then do a direct writing exercise I learned somewhere, I can’t recall.  This technique is simply to clear the mind with a couple deep breaths and then start writing.  I didn’t think about what I was writing I just wrote.  A few years later and countless filled journals and I am happier than I ever thought possible.  For many years I felt doomed to a life of misery.  I thought it was a disorder that I would have to live with forever.  Oh, how wrong was I?

I was continually unraveling all of the stuff my brain was thinking.  Of course, I know now that the thoughts in my head are just that, thoughts.  Some of them are amazing and productive and some are junk.  I was considering changing the name of my website but now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense as to why I named it the way I did in the first place.

I became aware of the separation between my thoughts and the observer of my thoughts and that was the only way I knew to articulate it at the time.  We can change the stuff our brains think.  We can be responsible thinkers.  I mean heck there is a ton of hoop la about taking care of the body, how about the mind?  Shouldn’t the mind get some hoop la too?

Anywho that is the stuff my brain was thinking this morning 🙂

I love you all!  I hope you have the most blessed day!  Keep your eye out for your messages…..  They are coming at you every day.

Michele  ❤

Can You Say No Without Guilt?

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I am a firm believer that we show people how to treat us.  Do you have boundaries in place for your life?  For many years I never had, but as I learned to love myself I found that I needed boundaries, not only boundaries for myself but boundaries for others.

I needed to know what I would, and would not tolerate from the people in my life, and what I would, and would not tolerate from myself.  It took a little time and a lot of digging to figure out just what I would allow.

It wasn’t easy, but I learned to say no without guilt.  That was a big one for me since for most of my life I was a people pleaser.  The first few times I literally felt a spark in my sacral chakra.  I was, admittedly, a little over whelmed but when no one died and life did’t crumble before me, I realized it would be OK, and it was, over time it got easier and easier.  Now the word, no, is just another word to me.

There are so many people in my life that have an aversion to the word no, and because of that they are taken advantage of and are under-appreciated.  I see this in the work place far too much.  There are some who drop the ball and others who pick it up.  I have to tell you from experience it is not the one picking it up that is catered too.  It is generally not the one that goes the extra mile that gets the raise.  Why?  Because it is expected.  It’s as simple as that.

I have clear, set boundaries these days.  I don’t feel the need to do anything I don’t want to do.  This does not at all mean that I am selfish.  In fact, I am more selfless than I have ever been in my life.  I am just more discerning now.  I am more choosy about who I help, and what I do.  It all comes back to the body, If I have a negative feeling about it in any way, I simply do not do it.  It has to feel good for me to be on board.  I have to feel a sense of peace about the situation to move forward.  I trust myself enough to know what is good for me.

Life without boundaries is terrible.  It’s all tense and thick.  It’s stressful, who needs that?  I struggled against everything in my life for many years.  It wasn’t until I discovered boundaries that I realized maintaining them would be what would give me the confidence and strength to stand up and Be me, to stand up and reclaim my life.  Setting boundaries is what brought me back to who I am meant to be.

My very first healthy boundary was a daily meditation practice.  I committed to it and I am glad I did.  Shortly following the start of my meditation practice a few more healthy boundaries popped up and they were to eat cleanly, get the proper amount of sleep, and to be hydrated every day.

I added more and more boundaries until I felt as though I was living authentically as myself.  I do what feels right for me and on the flip side I don’t do anything that doesn’t.  I don’t feel bad or make excuses for my decisions either, there is nothing to defend, I am simply doing what is right for me.

I have come to realize that I am as important, if not more than, anyone else out there.  I have to take care of me, so I can take care of others.  I used to believe that I could hate myself whole, but now I know better.

And as the great Maya Angelou said “when you know better you do better” 

❤  Michele

Waking up in Northern NY

Chain of Kindness

How many of us take the time to look for ways to be kind to one another?  Since adding Ellen DeGeneres to my morning ritual, it has become glaringly apparent, that today I need to get out there and find more ways to be kind.  Most people equate being kind with giving out money.  Unfortunately in today’s world a lot of us just don’t have money to give away, but to be kind doesn’t have to be about money.

To be kind is to simply be aware of the people around you.  Does someone in your office need a hug or an uplifting word today?  If so, give them what they need.  Does an elderly lady in the grocery store need help reaching something that is out of reach for her?  If so, step up with a smile and help out.  There are so many ways we can spread kindness.  If you are shy or feel awkward about approaching people, you can always give them a silent blessing, a silent hug, a smile.

I am making it my mission to find someone, anyone to be kind to wherever I go this weekend.  I don’t have a lot in the way of money, but I will be carrying around a few extra $10 bills this weekend to, maybe pay for someone’s morning coffee.  Or maybe I’ll buy a bouquet of flowers and knock on a random door and give them away.  I don’t know what I am going to do just yet, but I am going to have fun with this one.

I would like to make kindness one of my missions in life.  I am ready to make a difference.  I am ready to spread a little joy in hopes that even the tiniest act of kindness will be passed on to someone else.  It’s time that we all make a commitment to create a chain of kindness across the world.

If you find the urge to be a part of this chain of kindness please let me know what idea’s you have to spread love and compassion around the world.  Please stop by my Facebook page and tell me what your planning or how you have raised someone up or maybe how someone has raised you up.  I am excited about the possibilities.

That been said, I am off to get on with my day.  May you all have a blessed and safe weekend.

With much Love and Light

Michele ❤

Waking up in Northern NY

Show Me Your Vision Boards

How many of you out there have used vision boards as a way to bring specific things into their life?  I, for one, am a firm believer in the vision bored.  I started using them by accident the first part of 2012.  It was a particularly cold day in March, and I was bored.  I guess I didn’t know it at the time but it was my intuition that urged me to make my very first vision board.

So I went to the internet and picked out some pictures that I thought called to me.  This was the fun part and took quite a lot of time.  At the time I really had no rhyme or reason as to the pictures I picked.  I had a picture of a new car, a small red house with a for sale sign in front of it and some random pictures of nature, Buddha, and people in meditation.  I ordered them through the one hour photo at Wal-Mart, and went to pick them up as well as everything else I would need.

I bought a large framed poster board, and some glue sticks, that was it, that is all I needed to put it all together.  After I had carefully glued the pictures in place, I put them in the frame and hung it on my living room wall.  I enjoyed the process of making it but to be honest, once I put it on the wall I didn’t give it another thought.  

About five months later I was given the opportunity to buy a house almost identical to the one in the picture I had put on my vision board.  I was shocked because I really had not thought about buying a house like that.  I had already lost a business and a home years earlier, so I knew it would take an act of God to make this one happen.

And that He did.  We ended up moving into that house two months later.  The car came three months after that.  Oh and yes, about the meditation and nature, they are both very important aspects to my health and well-being.  Needless to say after that I became a vision board fiend.

I have six of them displayed throughout my house at this time.  A lot of them don’t have anything to do with physical things but are more about my spiritual expansion.  They work!  I cannot say it enough about it, give it a try.  It is like putting super grow on your intentions and desires.

The very next board I made was about living and eating healthy.  It was about creating healthy boundaries and loving myself enough to follow them.  That was in November 2012.  In January of the following year, book after book came to me.  It was like my teacher guides were standing next to me to help unravel some of what got me to become so overweight.  I remembered hearing “you have to fix the inside first before you can fix the outside.”  Being that, for most of my life, I had no idea what that meant I skipped over that part until now.

Over the course of the next ten months, I began a journey of deep exploration into the inner workings of Michele.  Through the unraveling process I lost a hundred pounds.  I lost that weight with the greatest of ease.  It simply fell off.  I was so happy I felt as though I were flying most of the time.  I seriously could go on forever on this subject but for the sake of cutting it short I say that this weekend we all make a vision board and post them here or on my Facebook page Waking Up in Northern NY.

Oh and by the way I have actually advanced my vision board making to the computer.  I use the paint program and have it printed and then I frame and hang it.  I love them all.  I am excited to make another.  If anyone has any questions about how to make them, please feel free to contact me through my Facebook page.

Well my loves, I am off to face the day.  I hope you all have the most fantastic day ever!

Much Love

Michele ❤

Spiritual Enlightenment and Icky Emotions

Does being awakened and enlightened mean that we never get angry, sad or annoyed?  I don’t think so.  God made us with an array of emotions, lets use them.  What kind of person walks around happy all of the time.  I mean, I am happy quite a lot but when something happens to annoy or anger me, the people in my life don’t know what to do.

Because it is so out of character for me to be anything but happy and uplifted these days it seems if I do have an off couple of hours it throws everyone else off as well.  This is precisely what happened yesterday.  I am working alone this week because my secretary is in Florida and wouldn’t you know it, this is the week one of our most important printers goes down for a couple of hours.

By the end of the whole ordeal I’m not going to lie, I was a bit frustrated, nothing serious, just a bit agitated to have to deal with this issue while I am working alone.  However, on the bright side, I had a hunch that I should test the printer at like two o’clock in the afternoon, which is about two hours before I needed to use it.  Had I not listened to my intuition I would have gotten backed up at the end of the day, held the boys up from loading the trucks and the worst, I would have gotten out of work late.  But It all turned out well because I did listen to my intuition, did the test print, discovered it wasn’t working, and the rest is history.

I want to say thank you to my spiritual team for giving me the information to check the printer out, and I want to thank myself for listening and following that information.  Turns out the Ethernet cable came loose.  Chalk one up to the all-knowing!  

Today is a new day.  I am open and ready to move through this day with grace.  I am ready to flow with what is and to be open and receptive to the hints and messages from my spiritual advisers.

My Daily Affirmations:

• I am open and receptive to the good and abundance of the universe.
• I talk less and listen more.  I give people the gift of being fully present with them.

Happy Hump day my friends.  Life is what you think it…

Michele ❤

Rituals or Routine?

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Who out there has rituals they perform on a daily basis?  I for one, love my morning rituals.  I love them so much I get up between three and four o’clock in the morning to be sure I am able to get them all in.  These rituals have changed my life.  I seriously went from a miserable, person to a blissful person in a very short amount of time.

I am able to carry out these rituals with ease because they are moving me closer to my purpose.  I can feel it each and every day.  I get up, I learn more, read more, write more and I feel fabulous for it.

So, each morning I get up and after feeding the cats and making the coffee, I dance.  I turn on some dance music and just go to town.  This morning I danced while watching Ellen with the music playing lightly in the back ground.  I have to say it was pretty awesome.  Ellen is a great person.  When I am finished watching her show I feel so uplifted, so I thought I would do it first thing in the morning and see how it uplifts my day.  I am giving this a definite thumbs up!

Then I open my journal and begin writing.  Whatever comes to mind, even if it is silly and nonsensical, I write it anyway because once the pen is primed I get my best information.  I use my journal to ask for guidance.  I use my journal to plan my meals or what I have to do in any given day.  I write outside of the lines and I scribble in it.  It is me and I love it.  I heard someone say one time that they wrote their self joyful.  That statement resonates with me because I feel as though I have written myself joyful as well.

The next thing I do is meditate for twenty minutes.  I usually just turn on YouTube to a meditation video, turn down the lights and meditate.  My mantra of choice is So Hum.  I like it because it means I am, which are two of my favorite words.  Did you know that whatever follows I am, will be what creates your life?  Therefore, we all want to be careful how you use those two powerful words.

Finally, I contemplate my day for a few seconds and then come up with an affirmation or two that brings it all together.  So, lets see, what are a couple of good affirmations for this fine Tuesday morning?

• I am open and receptive to the messages from my teacher guides today
• I am at peace and ready to learn
• I am a perpetual student.  I am ready to take my spiritual growth to the next level
• I am prosperous.  My income increases constantly

So there you have it, I have four today.  As they come I write them down.  I know they are messages from my intuition so I do not leave any out.  They are all equally important.

Well, my friends I am off to get on with my day.  May you all find peace and contentment as well as hope and excitement.

Have a blessed day

Michele ❤

Waking Up in Norther NY

What’s My Vibrational Problem?

I got up this morning feeling all blah and icky.  This is totally unlike me.  I love getting up in the morning.  It doesn’t matter if it’s Monday or Friday.  I love all of the days of the week.  I love going to work, I love coming home and I love everything in between.  I know what you must be thinking.  “oh my gosh, puke, this girl can’t be that happy.”  But the truth is, I am.

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So when I wake up feeling anything other than the happiness I normally feel, I immediately take to my journal to write out all the thoughts, and emotions that come up when I inquire; What do I need to know right now?  Why am I feeling vibrationally off this morning?  And what came through the pen were a few different things.

First, I wrote how my secretary, my partner, is on vacation and I will have to be alone and do all the work this week.  Then I wrote that I am just coming off of a weekend where I ate more than I should have.  And finally I wrote how I am two days from starting my period.  Bingo!!  That’s the one.

I knew right away that the PMS was the culprit.  I know how I get just before my period.  I can be grumpy, crave foods I shouldn’t be eating, and have zero energy.  Now that I am aware of the elephant in the room, so to speak, I can take measures to be sure that I stay stress free.  How do I do this?  It’s simple.  I always come back to my breath.

I will be doing many one-minute meditations for the next couple of days.  I read somewhere that it is impossible to become stressed if you a responsible breather.  By that I mean make sure you are getting several deep breaths throughout the day.  The body needs the oxygen and your stress levels will go way down, which incidentally is why we all have belly fat.

That been said I will end this blog post with a few intentions to start my day.  I like to set my intentions and desires for each day as well as those for my future pursuits.  It’s a great practice to get into, since it is from our intentions and desires that creation is born.  So here it goes!

• I intend on walking to and from work today.  I am going to take the thirty minutes it takes to get there and back to become grounded and centered.  I am going to do a walking meditation.
• I intend on working at a relaxing pace all the while having plenty of time to complete every task.
• Finally I intend on doing all of this by being present.  I will be one with the present moment so that I will be open and receptive to the guidance from my spiritual advisers.

What are your intentions and desires for today?

Stop over to my Facebook page.  Let’s talk and share!  Waking Up in Northern NY