Showing posts with label appreciate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label appreciate. Show all posts
I completely forgot I wrote a book. I mean, I know I wrote one, I have it on my shelf and I get a royalty deposit in my account whenever someone wonderful purchases one. However, it wasn't promoted to it's highest degree as life got a bit complicated around the time it was published.  Like, my husband had MAJOR surgery, our house was de-leaded and renovated, and I had three businesses to run.  In hindsight, perhaps not the best laid plan but hey, I know I can do amazing things in any situation and I am really proud to have something in print. 


How does this effect you? Well, I decided having the book sit on the shelf isn't doing anyone any good, so you will see chapters (don't worry, they are short, bite size pieces of Vicki to go.) showing up in every other blog. You can also purchase it through Amazon  or come see me if you like the old fashioned paper version. 



The book is called, Everyone has an IT, a guide to Accept, Accentuate and Appreciate Yours.  Here is the explanation of that title, as well as, the intro to the series of chapters:


Everyone has an It. What it is isn’t necessarily known, but we all have one. What is your it? Do you even know if you have one? If you did, would you want to name it, claim it or blame it? Where could you take your it? Would you want to display it? Would you want others to even know you have one?

Well that would depend on where you are in accepting of self and all the wonderful things that goes with finding out who you are and how many its you have. You see, ITs don’t discriminate. They are like belly buttons, everyone has had one at one time and probably didn’t pay too much attention to it...until they realized someone else had one and wondered “is mine the same? Is mine missing something? Is mine defective? What would THEY say about mine?”

As random as it may sound it resonated didn’t it? You started thinking about what was yours like and does it compare. Silly really when it is our individuality that makes this universe go around and around. Diversity being one of the most exciting things we have going for us as souls. The intention of this book is to help you not only identify what it is you have but to become so comfortable in having an IT that you relish in finding more. Each time you realize you have something that is calling to you, you get excited because that is one more layer of truth and individuality you can uncover. How exciting would it be to be able to look at your IT’s and celebrate them or at least refrain from groaning in their presence.

So, what exactly is an IT? An IT is individual as well as a group of the wonderful characteristics, thought patterns, belief systems and behaviors that have been cultivated during your journey. It can be a great thing, like Inner Truth, or it can be a great thing like an Inner Trickster. Ahhh, you thought I was going to say a bad thing didn’t you? Nope, just because something comes up that isn’t in the most favorable light does it mean it is a bad thing. This is what I would like to help you shift your belief and patterns around. There isn’t anything bad or negative about you or who you are. While there may be some stuff that could benefit from tweaking a bit, it isn’t bad. All of us got to be who we are through the various experiences in our lives and when we accept that and realize we can only move from today, the load gets a bit lighter and the journey gets to be more fun.

When one considers that although we all have different packaging, there is a lot in common underneath, there is often a similarity in our behaviors and our actions. I am not a mental health professional but I have seen my share of individuals in an advising capacity and one thing I have come to notice is just how a like we really are. Individuality is a wonderful thing and I know how special each person’s soul is and honor that uniqueness. It has been my observation though, that while searching for that special sense of self, that we tend to mimic patterns and behaviors and downright quirky trends. One only has to look to the news programs or tabloids to realize how much we all want to be alike while striving for our own sense of self.

It is in this observation that I asked myself, what is IT that makes us all have it, want it, create it and live it? Why is it that we don’t always want to admit we have one too? In this compilation of stories and experiences and techniques, I hope to help you become comfortable with your It and perhaps even be able to embrace whatever it is you are working on enhancing, creating, releasing, challenging, and believing.

This work was created to be taken in bite size pieces. You can read it all the way through and then go back or you can take it one chapter at a time. You could even skip around if you would like. Each chapter is designed to open with an idea, discover who you are through the process and then close with an affirmation that you are wonderful in whatever you were able to offer that day, week, month or longer if you wish. See, it is all about choice. I thank you for choosing to read this book and I appreciate you being a part of my journey.

I hope you enjoyed the first entry. Please let me know what you feel and if you'd like more! :)


Consistently accentuating my It's, 

Vicki


For some reason, this year's solstice seems to be greatly needed by many whether they realize it or not. For those of us experiencing the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year, it signifies a shift to longer days and the offer of more light. Now, we go through this EVERY YEAR so why is this one the most challenging? My feeling is it is because we are entering the energy of 2015, the year of fruition. The culmination of whatever you have put into place in the last few years so energetically, we are perceiving this coming and perhaps getting antsy. More on this in a later post but it is a really good thing. YAY! 

The solstice, as experienced in the Northern Hemisphere, is happening December 21st at 6:03 EST. Often, it is celebrated with ritual as it is the return to light and the giver of life. Little by little, the days will get longer leading up to the Summer Solstice.

I believe the days leading up to the shift can be best served by taking a little inventory of self and what could perhaps use a little light. There is a tendency to want to rush right through the darker days and not appreciate what they have to offer. Dark is not bad, it is where brilliance may actually lie if you would listen and realize you won't get stuck there if your intention is to bring light to whatever you find. It also offers the balance of yin to the lights yang. Personally, I can not sleep in a room where there is light, so to the dark I say thank you. Thank you for the sleep that is necessary to reboot my system! 

We are very fortunate to live in a region where we have seasons. I believe we could honor all of them and in doing so, find a balance in our joy factor of life! 

If you want to enter into this transition into 2015 with a clear energy, I would suggest you consider smudging your home, car and work space if possible. Smudging is the practice of using sage to clear a space. There are many beliefs about how best to do this. I tend to go to the less is more place. One, acquire some sage from a metaphysical, health or online store. Light the bundle and ask for your team to help you clear the space. I then ask for anything that is not of the light, to go to the light. This can be any energy left from arguments that happened, illness or generally cranky energy. Be sure to open a door, window and use exhaust fans if you have them. You want the energy to travel out of the house. To not ventilate will cause the energy to stir up and add to whatever was going on when you first started to clear. After you finish going around your entire space, be sure the sage is out and enjoy your cleansed space. 

Another great thing to do on any solstice or full moon is to create a list of what you would like to release. They can be emotional, physical or spiritual. Anything that comes to you about what could be ready to go. Write it down, wrap it with red string (This is not a big deal if you use another color. Intention is much more important than supplies.) then burn it and send the energy out into the universe to be released. If possible, please do this safely and outside. If this is not possible due to restrictions or laws, you can burn inside but afterwards, remove the ashes from the home immediately after they cool. If you really can't burn, a shredder works well too just be sure to remove the shreds immediately as well.

Give yourself the gift of appreciating the long night and the allow yourself time to spend in silence. Tap into what is in your head and heart. Connect to the heart and know this is your true GPS system that offers balance much like the solstices do. Trust that the brilliance of the earth is within you too. A balance of light and dark, noise and silence, physical and non-physical. A beautiful compilation of winter and summer meant to be eased into with fall and spring. Be easy with yourself as we travel into a new year. Take that inventory and be sure to appreciate the good moments too. 



Leaving the headlamp off and wrapping myself in the blankey of darkness, 
Vicki

"Being thankful isn't about taking inventory of what is in your life at any given moment. It is a way of being in your life in any given moment."vb


I do love this time of year. I love every time of year because we have amazing seasons here, but this year I am especially grateful for November. The last two Octobers have really been challenging and I was not sad to see this years pass by and segue into November. I am one of those odd ducks that really does believe that everything happens for a reason and if I am aware enough, I can see it and move through the parts that are a little squishy, faster and with more ease. 

I keep reading how everyone is thankful. Thankful for the week, the holiday, the snow, the sales, the vacations, the time with family, the coming hibernation (although I kick into high creative gear in the winter...I know...odd duck.) and the list goes on. I am so happy that people are grateful and being conscious of being thankful, but couldn't we do it every day? Couldn't we see what is there for us to be thankful for? Of course we could, but will we, that is probably the best question to ask.

Will you join me in a daily expression of thankfulness? Will you allow yourself to look around and be grateful for what you have in your life? Really grateful not just that platitude we post on facebook or the I'm fine that we give people when they ask. Really grateful for the ability to breathe and to be invested in life and to show up on a daily basis to be all we can be in this body, in this lifetime.

It really doesn't take a lot of time and I promise you, it takes less energy than complaining and ALL of us find the time and energy to do that. So, this is my challenge to you for this week. Every day, several times a day if you would like, find something to be grateful for and acknowledge it. Give it a high five or simply smile and know that you have the best secret ever; gratitude leads to more things to be grateful for. Amazing isn't it?

I am thankful for all of the experiences of these last two years and proud to know somewhere deep down I knew that lamenting wasn't going to get me anywhere but clicking into who I really am and being silly and enjoying the fact that life is everywhere would.

I am also thankful for all of you. However I have come to know you or even if we  have never met. The world does not exist without each organism offering its presence. That is very cool to me and I appreciate whatever balance your energy brings to this greater whole.

I wish you the best this week has to offer you and more!!!!!!!!

Greatly filled with gratitude,
Vicki

www.vickibaird.com