What’s in a Question?

by Sandy Penny

Why do so many people use a question as a headline?

It starts the reader thinking about the subject of the article. It speaks directly to the reader and immediately engages them. It’s a popular marketing strategy because it works.

It actually sounds like you care about the opinion of your reader, and most authors do care. So what if it’s a marketing ploy? If it engages you in an internal dialogue and you learn something about yourself in the process, isn’t that a productive exercise? Who doesn’t want to think our opinion is important to others?

Asking questions is a valuable social tool for creating dialogue. Many people lack the questioning skill. They just want to tell you what they think and move on to the next subject. Caring about what other people say creates a bond between you. It can create more loyal customers who feel that you’re listening and responding to their needs. After all, they’re buying the product, shouldn’t you care what they think?

Back in 1978, when I got the idea to start a newspaper in Houston, Texas, on the heels of another failed newspaper, it didn’t seem like a great business idea. If my predecessor went out of business, perhaps the market for that type of newspaper was lacking. I really didn’t know why they went out of business, so I hit on a strategy that worked for me, and I’ve since successfully used it to start other businesses.

I picked up a copy of the defunct newspaper, called all the advertisers and invited them to a party. I was up front that the party was about discussing a newspaper idea. I didn’t try to trick them into coming to a party and then spring the newspaper idea on them. I let them know I was interested in creating a newspaper that would meet their needs and the needs of their customers. I passed out a mock-up of my newspaper idea to everyone at the party. Then I did something unusual, I asked them how I could best serve them and their customer base. They had lots of great ideas.

Next I asked them to support me in meeting their needs, and I sold enough advertising that day, on a newspaper that had never been produced, to pay for the first printing. After that, I had a party every month when the paper was printed so advertisers could take bundles of newspapers to their businesses. I thereby eliminated about half my distribution costs (mostly efforts on my part). Each month, I would chat up my advertisers for new ideas for future issues and get their feedback on how I was doing with meeting their needs.

The biggest benefit that came out of the experience was the sense of community that was created around the newspaper. It became the hub for dialogue among community members, and the monthly meeting became the venue for that dialogue. I sold more advertising and collected checks in a timely fashion at those parties. About a year later, a larger newspaper came into my community and tried to start a competitive publication. It was better funded and slicker, but it could not get a foothold. My community was really loyal because I had created a personal bond with them by asking for their feedback – and of course, using it. You can shoot yourself in the foot if you go to the trouble of getting input, and then don’t use any of it. People tend to feel disregarded and badly used.

So, why am I writing about this in a healing arts section? The same technique works in personal relationships. It’s all well and good to say that we should not care what other people think. Independence and autonomy are great, and we should not let our lives be run by other people, but sometimes friends and customers have really excellent ideas that can benefit us personally and in business. Asking questions and really listening and using the answers makes our friends and customers feel valued. It develops interactive relationships. We all know those who pontificate from on high and never let others talk.

Dialogue creates community and cooperation and strong friendships that sustain themselves during challenging times. We are living in challenging times right now. Maybe it’s time to ask a few more questions of those you care about and really listen to what they have to say. What do you think?

What Do We Do Now?

By Sandy Penny

So much is going on in the causal plane right now that we feel like nothing is happening here in our dimension, but it’s not true. Tremendous changes are happening at many different levels, although things may look the same at times. So, don’t despair, the world is being shape shifted, and we are asked to wait patiently while the new and good is being built for us to inhabit. Like building a house, sometimes things take longer than we anticipate, and we may be left with temporary housing while the new home is being built, after the old one is no longer available. That’s the metaphor for those who have been forced to leave their old surroundings and seemingly, nothing has been prepared to replace them.

So, what do we do now? We are challenged to return to our spiritual roots and put energy where we want it to manifest. I recently wrote a “program” for my life, something to focus on and put energy into. I was holding a pretty specific vision, and it had only partially manifested, so I could either accuse myself of sabotage, or I could refocus in a way that empowers that reality without limiting it to a possibly changing vision.

If you are absolutely sure of what you want, then, by all means, envision it, accept it, be grateful for it. Hold it tightly and claim it daily. However, if you have any questions, guilt or hesitation about any aspect of that vision, then open yourself up to a potentially bigger vision that the Universe may have for you. In these physical bodies, we cannot see too far beyond what we have experienced or seen on TV or read somewhere. But the Universe can, and the Universe is the machine or system that puts physical reality into motion. And beyond that, God or the All, can conceive of things we haven’t even dreamed in our farthest-out reality imaginings. When I give energy to a program, I always say, if not this, something better and trust the Universe to give me something better, something I may not be thinking of, but that might suit me very well.

As we shift into the Aquarian Age and old structures break down, old visions and old realities fall by the wayside and create chaos. Chaos is the loose energy that can be harnessed for the new world vision that we, as individuals, hold. When we fear the chaos, we surrender to it, and it can be devastating, but when we recognize the chaos as the reforming energy, it can be very exciting. Let go of your old pronouncements about life and open up to your wildest dreams. What do you want? Not, what can you possibly have, but what do you want? Do not limit the Universe to what you know. Expand yourself to encompass new possibilities.

What about you? What do you want? What are you going to do next? Many blessings on whatever it is. May your life be rich and happy.

Painting a Rainbow Life

Rainbow Life

By Sandy Penny

Back in 1993, I did an interview with psychologist Nancy White who has a wholistic therapy center in Houston, Texas. She has a light machine that is supposed to affect your mood and your ability to handle stress. Combining light therapy and psychoanalysis, she has been quite successful in treating alcoholics, drug abusers, and depression--garnering a much lower recidivism rate than most programs.

Nancy allowed me to experience the light machine during our interview. I sat in a chair with a hood over my head while a special type of light was strobed into my eyes to be absorbed by my brain. I also wore earphones, and music and miscellaneous sounds—including ocean waves, helicopters, voices in a crowd, yelling, and soothing music—were played while the light blinked.

I watched, mesmerized, as colors swirled through my vision in a psychedelic rainbow spiral. I began to wonder what kind of light source could change colors that way. Was it a more sophisticated spinning color wheel like those we used on metal Christmas trees? Was it projecting some kind of a movie? When I asked her about it, she blew my mind when she said, “There is only one color being strobed, white light. The colors you see are a response to the sounds you hear through the earphones and are generated by your own inner prism.” I could barely wrap my mind around the concept, and I have spent a great deal of time considering the ramifications.

We say that we color our lives with our perceptions, but this dynamic is so much more real and powerful than we realize. Our feelings change the way we experience an event. Have you noticed that when you’re stressed and in a hurry, it seems like every traffic light is red, every slow driver is on the road in front of you, and people demonstrate the rudest behaviors? But, when you’re in a great mood, you just seem to sail along, choosing all the right streets to avoid traffic snarls and finding the perfect front door parking space. So, is that a reality or a perception influenced by your mood? Do you actually affect traffic, or do you just notice something different? And, how interactive is it if you’re conscious of your reactions? Can you choose to have a better life just by refusing to let it upset you? If so, what a powerful tool.

In the late 1970s, I wrote about biofeedback experiments conducted by Baylor Medical School in the Houston Medical Center. I was allowed to observe several patients who had issues with blood pressure, fast heart rate and other measurable physical problems. The biofeedback machine was set to emit a faster, high-pitched tone when the blood pressure was high or the heart rate too fast. The patient’s goal was to lower their blood pressure or heart rate, and as it lowered, the biofeedback machine emitted a slower and lower tone, so you could measure your progress by the changing pitch. And of course, the lower pitch was less annoying.

How amazing that people could change a physical response by merely knowing that it was too high. They were instructed to simply breathe and imagine it going down. It worked. And, out of that study came another result: once a patient could easily lower their physical stats by listening to the tone change, the researchers set the tone to the lower tone to begin with, and without even thinking about it, the physical stats immediately lowered themselves—Pavlov’s new dog. The interactive training of the body was complete. At the time, this was a radical and revolutionary finding. It gave us the understanding that we respond to outside influences, and that we ultimately have control over those responses.

Today, it’s common knowledge that we have more control over our bodies and lives than we give ourselves credit for. So, why do we let our lives get so out of control? Why do we let things bother us so much that we stress out and make ourselves sick? Perhaps it has to do with personal responsibility. If we acknowledge that we are in control of our lives and our joy, then we have no one to blame for our unhappiness except ourselves. But, I prefer the term “response ability,” the ability to respond to the circumstances of our lives in a positive and joyful way.

Yes, life is our own personal rainbow, and it’s up to us to paint it beautifully.

Have Your Own Experience

By Sandy Penny

As most people, I read a lot about other people’s spiritual experiences, and they are certainly fascinating, but the point is not just to entertain and amaze us, it is to spur us on toward our own experiences. Having a personal relationship with the Divine, the Creator, the Manifestor, the Universe, whatever it is for you is the greatest experience you’ll ever have.

When you open yourself to the Spiritual World, you throw off the shackles and limitations of the 3-D everyday projection of the world. You open yourself to magic, to mystical experiences, and non-physical reality and beings.

Many people are afraid of the unseen world, and that perception has been fostered by organized religion. The reason is not that those beings and experiences don’t exist, but that they have such enormous power, that they cannot be controlled or manipulated for unearned gain. Only the limited person and system can be controlled in predictable ways. Therein lies the danger, if you get what you put out, do you deserve what you get? That is not to be critical of those who are not having a good experience; it is to inspire you to new visions, new heights, new experiences, all your heart’s and soul’s desires.

If you make yourself available to Spirit on a regular basis and affirm your openness and willingness to participate in a greater life, you will begin to have your own amazing experiences. You will experience synchronicities, unexplainable coincidences, that lead you to wonderful energies and encounters. What stories you will have to share with others!

Are you satisfied with hearing about the adventures of others, or do you want to pursue your own path with your own joyful adventures? Do you want to know the magic that others report?

That being said, there are challenges that come with the territory. When you first begin to open up to Spirit, you usually get some peak experiences that change your life and your outlook on life. Once you’re firmly ensconced with one foot in the heavens and one foot on the ground, the balancing act begins. Many people who have known you for years may not recognize you or relate to what is happening to you. They may try to discourage you from pursuing your “dangerous” or “evil” follies. Family may even think you’ve gone crazy. You might do something radically out of character for you, but once you truly connect through your heart to Spiritual Guidance, you will know, without a doubt, that the experiences are divine and holy.

Then, you will begin to seek others who see the world as you do. You will begin to change your daily life. You may quit your job, or go off on a journey, or just feel differently than you’ve ever felt before. And, you may feel frustrated with those who are not on the same page with you because they don’t understand what you’re saying. And others may drop away from your life because you no longer have anything in common. You may not even speak the same language any more (not literally, not speaking in tongues), but experience-wise, you may have a completely different perspective.

You may feel excited for no reason, elated over some small event or have access to information or ways of thinking that you never knew before. You might even begin to hear messages from Spirit or develop psychic abilities or even have feelings that don’t belong to you.

You life will never be the same, so are you up for it? If so, set your intention to align yourself with Spirit and acknowledge your willingness and openness, and be quiet while you wait for a response. If your issue is patience, you may have to wait for a while, to develop some patience and commitment to the process, but if you’re sincere in your desire, it will happen. You will have your own unique experiences that will not only change you, but will change the world for you.

Decisions, Decision,What's a Person to Do?

Decisions, Decisions - What’s a Person to Do?

by Sandy Penny

There's so much stress these days that I thought this would be a timely topic.

When I was in New Zealand, it became very apparent to me that having fewer choices can be a good thing. In the U.S., we think having choices, lots of them, is absolutely necessary. But, think of the stress and time it takes to even choose a breakfast cereal.

A few years ago, the following scene was my life. I have greatly simplified it since then, so I thought perhaps some of you would be able to relate to this little scene (try reading it in one breath to get the feel of the stress)...

“Mom, what do we have to take for lunch, and what’s for breakfast?” she yells from the bedroom. “What am I supposed to wear today?” he yells from the bathroom. “Sandy, what are you going to do about that press release problem?” the voice on the phone begs for help. “Ms. Penny, have you decided which house you want to lease, or do you want to buy?” the realtor asks looking pointedly at her watch, after we’ve looked at umpteen different locations. “Now, which bills get paid on the first of the month?...What day can we work on the newsletter?...Have you chosen a topic
for your article?...Are you going to teach another class? (Should I ask the runes?) Are you leaving your full-time job? (Should I check my astrological chart?) What business are you going into? (Should I call a psychic?) Are you still doing regressions? (Should I meditate, pray or I-Ching this one?) Did you decide? Have you made up your mind? We've got to have a decision - now.”

Stop!!! Please!!!

Take a deep breath, say three oms, and run screaming out of the room. (Hey, I’m human too.) It's only Monday noon, and I've had all the above to think about. I don’t know about you, but my ability to make decisions has been used up for about the next twenty years in the last three months. I’ve made so many major decisions that I’ve almost decided to hire out as a decision specialist. If you have a decision to make, come to me, I’m an expert, I’ll make up your mind for you! (It would be more fun to decide for other people anyway - I wouldn’t have to live with the consequences.)

Unfortunately, we do have to live with the consequences of our decisions, and no matter who makes the decision, ultimately we are responsible for our own lives. We cannot escape our karma by letting someone else take over our lives. Psychics cannot make our decisions for us - because no matter what they tell us, we decide to listen and follow their advice or to ignore it, and that puts the deciding factor right back in our own laps.

Many people go to psychics for that very reason, they want to absolve themselves of being personally responsible. They want to be able to throw up their hands in a crisis and say, “He told me to do it...I would never have done it unless she said to...Now look at this mess they created.” But that’s only a mind game - a cop out. [Besides, no psychic worth their salt will tell you what to do or not to do - they will simply give you a broader view of the situation, and possibly foresee the consequences of a particular action. Any psychic who does tell you what to do ties up their karma with yours, and shares the responsibility for the outcome, so it’s a risky business, this power
and control stuff.]
Whether you ask the Universe, God, the runes, cards, I Ching, astrologers, psychics, pendulums or flip a coin, your life still belongs to you.

It is up to you to make it wonderful or miserable, stressful or relaxed, fruitful or empty,
exciting or boring.

And that’s the really wonderful thing about it - because if it’s really up to you, then you can
make it anything you want it to be - and I want it all - happiness, friends, love, success, peace and joy. And I decree that it will always be so because, in my life I am queen, and the queen rules!

Take control of your life - and be free - it is your Western heritage to accept the responsibility of freedom of choice.” [It is your group karma by virtue of your birth in this country, or even if you chose to move here.]

If you abdicate your responsibility, then you will live with the consequences of that decision. Remember, no one has your interest closer to their heart than you. Seek your guidance; make your own choices; accept your successes - and all is well with the world.

For more Sandy Penny Musing, check out all her blogs and sites:

What are Your Hugs Saying?

by Sandy Penny

Hugging seems like such a simple act, what can be complicated about it? You put your arms around a person and pull them close, isn't that about it?? Actually hugging can be a very significant ritual, appropriate in some places and taboo in others.

There was recently some news on hugging in the workplace where it was considered too familiar, too intimate and bordering on sexual harassment. A hug is a way of connecting, and the connection can be on many levels. A hug can send a message of "I feel like we're friends," or it can send a message saying "I'm not willing to get that close to you."

And it's not just whether you hug or don't hug that sends the message. The type of hug can get the message over loud and clear. Leaning forward so you hardly touch another person when you hug may indicate a reluctance to connect with that person, or a reluctance to connect in general. Sideways hugs can indicate a feeling of distance or a desire to distance yourself from that person, or it can just mean you're in a hurry. It can be a perfunctory social requirement.

How long you hold a hug, whether you move your hands while you hug, how you position your arms when you hug, all mean something, all communicate something about your relationship with that person and with people in general.

What are you communicating when you hug? Take some time to think about whether you really want to hug someone, if you don't, extend your hand in a handshake. That gives a message too.

Lots of archives on this site. Explore and Enjoy. Check out more spiritual journey stories on my writing site: http://writingmuse.com. If you have any spiritual questions, email me at sandypenny@live.com. If you want writing tips, visit my writing and marketing blog: http://writeandmarket.blogspot.com. Check back often or subscribe to updates (button on the right).

Thanks.

What Creates Success?

What Creates Success in the Aquarian Age?

By Sandy Penny

In this time of shifts, changes and re-creation, it’s no longer time to go it alone. One of the requirements for success in the Aquarian Age is the establishment of community. I notice it happening all around me now. People are creating groups for all kinds of endeavors. We’ve always known that networking helps build success, but now, more than ever, it’s absolutely necessary.

In the spirit of community, I placed an ad in the upcoming issue of the Horse Fly ButerFly section that I write to invite healers and spiritual practitioners to unite with me to provide a monthly gathering to demonstrate their skills and talents to the public. I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, and now’s the time to launch it. Taos has so many of these wonderful helpers, but it’s a little on the QT here. Now it needs to come to the forefront. The energy is supporting all kinds of mutually beneficial endeavors.

A New Way to Look at the Challenges

Every time you see an old paradigm business struggling or failing, energy and money is being released to be reinvested in businesses and systems that better serve the greater good, the people who support them. Systems that no longer serve the public but expect the public to serve them cannot remain in this new age energy. They have to either make radical shifts in the direction of the people they serve, or they must go away.

The old ways do not depart quietly though. They hang on by their fingernails and fight for their turf, but we, the people, must not allow them to continue their usury practices. This goes for the financial institutions and the automobile manufacturers. And how does that change occur? The public has to vote with their dollars for what they want to survive. They also have to voice their opinions to the people who represent them to those larger institutions. I am not a politically oriented person, but at this time, if you want your desired changes to occur, you must take the action (even if it is only in the other dimensions) to visualize and create the positive changes you want.

Spirit of Community

In the spirit of community, it’s also a time to remember that you can call on those you love and those who are your supporters to hold the energy for your success at whatever it is that you are trying to create. Do not forget this. Sometimes it’s difficult to ask for help, but the truth is that by just asking others to help your envision your success, even if they do nothing, just the reading of your email or your speaking your request strengthens the response from the universe. Communication is another prime directive from the Aquarian Age energy.

Many people hesitate to do this, as they do not want negative feedback from the people to whom they reveal their goals, and that’s a valid point. Choose wisely those you ask for help. Choose those who understand the power of positive confirmation of your goals. I will always hold the energy for you if you ask me to. I will hold it cleanly and powerfully in the way that you ask for it.

And, if you’re experiencing the sense of being done with whatever you have been doing, now is the time to reinvest your time and energy in something that feels right for you. If you don’t know what that is (but most of us really do, we just may not think we can have it), begin with a confirmation: “I now know exactly what I want to be doing with my life.” Repeat that until it feels like you’re done saying it; then leave it to the universe to bring back the highest and best vision of that reality. And you can ask friends to support you in drawing that to you as well. The more you vibrate with the frequency of the knowing, the faster it comes back to you. This is a time of amazing aha moments.

And, constantly check in with your heart, your feelings, to see if you’re on the right track. Don’t be led down the path of what you “think you ought to do.” Also, redefine success for yoursef. Make it your own vision of success. Don't use someone else's measure for your dreams.

Go for the gold. St. Patrick’s Day is coming up, find your pot of gold at the end of the rainbow that you are. Onward and upward with ya, now Laddies and Lassies.
Sandy Penny, Writing is My Passion
Taos, NM HM/OFFICE: 575-751-1456
"Doing what you love opens the doorway to magic in your life,
opening the doorway to magic creates more of what you love."

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What's that Sickness About?

What’s this Sickness About?

By Sandy Penny

In Taos, and I’ve heard all over the country, people are having terrible respiratory and sinus infections or viruses or some sort. It comes on fast, lasts a couple of weeks, and sometimes even comes back for another round. I had it myself for two weeks, fever, coughing, gunky drainage and general exhaustion. I’m better now, thanks.

What I learned is that this is a symptom of what people are feeling in the U.S. With all the economic difficulties being touted on TV, the challenges laid out for the country, and the relief and fear of major change, no wonder it’s affecting us. Difficulty breathing, releasing toxins, and having to take a break after all the tension. We have been a people living in fear, fear of war, fear of economic loss, and a general malaise. Now, it’s time to let all that go, and the letting go process can result in physical symptoms. It doesn’t have to, but it can. I’m not trying to spread it by talking about it, but sometimes we need confirmation that we are not the only ones experiencing a phenomenon.

The good news is that, once you figure out what's going on, you can begin to shift into a more positive way of releasing those toxins. You can choose exercise, healthy organic cleanse products, and then replenish yourself with positive confirmations, healthy food and supplements, and a good dose of doing what you love.

My latest motto is, “Doing what you love opens the door to magic, and opening the door to magic brings more of what you love.”

Now’s the time to re-vision what you love and take new steps toward that vision. Isn't that interesting, the word revision, a change made is also re-vision, see it differently. Whether you know it or not, you’re living the life you’ve imagined. Perhaps it’s time to consciously choose to imagine something new. One conscious thought picture is more powerful than 100 unconscious thoughts that flood your mind every day.

One of the powerful experiences I had while I was sick was the recognition that I had been countermanding my own confirmations, unconsciously. I realized that the things I had been programming for were not actually what I want. I had been asking for high-paying writing projects. That sounds good, but the truth I have to admit is that I want to be rewarded for my own writing. I’ve always wanted that, that’s my passion, however, I was asking for what I thought would pay the bills. What I thought was acceptable to the world as a way to earn money. Contained in that skewed program is the fear that I can’t be supported through the spiritual writing that I love. I was putting myself in a small, uncomfortable box. During this time, I was offered a technical writing project, and I declined it. I was so proud of myself for declaring what I really want and refocusing my energy on making that happen.

I find, if I’m experiencing a huge aha moment like that, others are too. How about you? Time to reimagine your life? Time to get out of that box? Time to bring back the magic? As my friend, Margarethe Rustan taught me, fear is faith in a negative outcome. Turn that faith around and put it where you really want it.

Winding Down and Gearing Up

By Sandy Penny, WritingMuse


As this year ends, many are cheering the fact that it’s finally over. It has been the most challenging year in my 58-year memory for more people than I’ve ever seen. For me, it has been a big zero (on the surface, but don’t be too hasty to judge it, fallow fields restore their rich minerals and grow better crops.). That being said, it has also been the best year ever for some who have been able to find the new plug-in for their Aquarian Age energy. They are prospering and thriving and sharing the wealth and their knowledge.

This past week, I’ve dealt with many powerful, spiritual people who are experiencing depression, anxiety, frustration, lethargy, and just plain anger with their circumstances. The laws of the Universe seem to have changed. My guides used to love to say, “Everything has changed, nothing is what you thought it would be.” Who are those mystical beings who voted for the changes and put new rules into effect? Geez, did they mess up our lives in so many ways or what?

Well, the truth is that we are those powerful spiritual beings who chose to be here for this amazing change. We saw it coming, and we signed up to be part of the process. What many of us did not know was how difficult it would be to make these changes once we were in human bodies indoctrinated to an outdated system, the Piscean Age. I am really tired of talking about the Piscean Age. Why can’t it just die out quietly and let the new age take over? Night and day do not struggle with each other, they easily flow from one to the other in a cycle of change that allows us to balance our lives.

But isn’t that what is actually happening? Old systems are failing and dropping away, making way for the new and better ones. Old ways no longer work. Only the best practices that fit into the new age systems can be funded by that energy. It’s a real dilemma for us. We want the new and better to prosper and grow, but we’re not willing to suffer through the shift. It’s hard right now to get our footing. The earth beneath us keeps falling away, like an earthquake. It can be very difficult to embrace so many new ideas and systems when we’ve just learned how to get what we want out of the old ones.

It reminds me of W. Edwards Demming’s Quality Process. Demming was the man who went to Japan and turned their image around from the idea that Japanese-built meant shoddy work to Japanese products having a high quality manufacturing process in place. He actually took the ideas from earlier American business ethics and got a whole country to embrace them through honoring the grass roots ideas from all levels of manufacturing. It was a bottom-up philosophy.

He brought the completely developed and proven system back to the US and reintroduced it into the American corporate world where they gave it lip service but kept undercutting it. Why? Because it took power away from the upper executive echelons. And, why wouldn’t they resist? They fought long and hard to climb that ladder, and to get to the top only to be told they have to share that power with all the lower level workers. It just flew in the face of their whole life of striving and clawing their way up. That’s what we’re witnessing now. The world at large is welcoming the power back to the people while the execs are fighting to get the last ounce of gold from a disintegrating system. The new age is less upward hierarchy and more circular, nuclear flow. Anyone can introduce something new and have a chance to develop it. The smartest money people are looking for the opportunities of the future that are sustainable in this new energy.

In the coming year, along with our president, we’ve got a lot of work to do to bring ourselves up to speed for the Aquarian Age life model. “Everything has changed, nothing is what we thought it would be.” It’s a powerful time, and a difficult time, a frustrating, hope filled, wonderful time.

The good news is that we who have wanted to be of service to this world have ample opportunities to claim our personal power and develop a niche that funds our lifestyle choices and fulfills our destinies. What do you want NOW? Where do you want to invest your time, energy and money?

I predict that Obama will introduce lots of incentives to small businesses during the next four years. There will be small business loans for sustainable technologies and services. Mental health services will start expanding their models of dealing with the stress of all this change and those who want to work to create new types of communities will find money available that was not there previously. Obama is the first New Age president in this country. He’s a forward thinker, a problem solver, and a caring human being who wants to truly improve this world. I know that’s a tall order, and it won’t happen through one man, but he is the symbol of the changes. It’s time to refocus on the people instead of the system. Systems have to serve the people, not the other way around.

So, gather together your ideas, desires, and inspirations and get started on your fast unfolding path this year. Jump in and make it happen. The time for talk is done. The time for action has come.

For those of you who don’t yet know what you want to do, I suggest rereading my article on the Aquarian Age Business Model (click on 2005 on the right side of this page). It specifies some areas that will be successfully funded in this time period, for the next 1000 years.

Peace, love, joy, abundance and lots of high energy for 2009. Happy New Age!!!

A Few Small Steps for Me, A Giant Leap in Consciousness

by Sandy Penny

I circled the fire with a tambourine in my hand, striking the instrument on my thigh in time with the chant, "My body does whatever it takes to protect itself." I gazed into the glowing red and orange eyes of the twelve foot by four foot bed of coals and watched a coating of white ash begin to form. The fire pit looked back, studying me with its many eyes. "Will you walk tonight?" it silently asked. Would I cast aside caution and logic and make a tremendous leap of faith with a few small steps on a 1200 degree bed of coals?

The chant changed to "I am the light, I am the love" and then swelled around me with "The fire and I are one," and I thought about how I came to be standing here on the edge of eternity, a 42-year old woman, questioning the very nature of reality.

It was only a few weeks ago as I entered the Chapel of Prayer with fifty or so people to listen to a Hindu Guru tell traditional Indian parables, that I met Charmaine McGhie and Tore Fossum. We were seated next to each other and connected so quickly that they invited me to a New Year's Eve Party and Firewalk.

I was intrigued. I had seen firewalking on TV and read about it in National Geographics, but never had I witnessed it in person. Meanwhile, they gave me a book called "Firewalk" by Jonathon Seinfeld which I read with interest. It talked about firewalking as an empowerment tool and a subcultural movement in the U.S. since the 1970s. The U.S. has more firewalkers than the rest of the world put together. I couldn't believe it! How could I have missed it? I had done every "new age" experience I had run into. How could such a phenomenon have slipped by me? My excitement grew as the days passed.

The book helped keep me occupied and gave me a lot to think about. It told stories of firewalking in every culture. It quoted scriptures about firewalking and discussed the unsatisfactory research that has been done. I was primed for the experience - to watch the experience, at least.

I arrived early at the suburban house in a nice Friendswood Texas neighborhood. Not really where you'd expect to see a firewalk. The preparations looked like any other New Year's Eve party. Guests arrived with covered dishes, and someone played piano - 50s hits to sing along with. Not even any alcohol present.

At about 9:00 p.m. everyone gathered in the back yard. A cool front was moving through, and the air was cooling down. The grass was soaked with a hose as a safety precaution, and the evening began.

We each took turns carrying logs to build the fire. We were instructed to think of the logs like children, and focus loving attention on them. A firewalk instructor took the logs from us and built an impressive "boy scout" style teepee-shaped structure which would become a large bonfire using about a half cord of wood. We took turns stuffing newspaper in the cracks, and the fire was lit with great ceremony. A blaze reached skyward as a word of thanks and protection was intoned by a lady wearing a long full skirt. Surely that skirt was not a good thing to walk on fire in. When the fire was blazing violet and gold, we went to the patio to try out some other phenomenal activities. It would be two to three hours before the coals were ready.

Someone asked if we wanted to play the "rebar game" and a chorus of assent rang out. I had no idea what that meant. Rebars are 3/4" x 6' steel reinforcement bars used to reinforce concrete. Two people stand face to face six feet apart and a rebar is suspended between them by placing the tip of the metal rod in the hollow of the throat. The two people are told to focus their energy and see the rod bending. When they feel focused, the walk toward each other. The rod could either pierce your throat, cut off your breathing, or it could bend. All of them bent. There were no tracheotomies. It is impossible to use force to bend the rod in this position as it causes tremendous pain. I know that through experience. But when focusing properly the rod just sort of melts, and you are suddenly catching your partner in your arms as you fall toward each other.

Yes, I did it!

Next, we broke boards like so many karate experts. Only we weren't. One inch thick by 24 inches wide pine boards set on bricks. When focused, the board almost breaks itself. That was a tremendous energy rush for me. I didn't know I could do that.

Finally, the coals were ready. We returned to the back yard. The fire was so hot, it was difficult to stand close to it for more than a few minutes. The coals were raked out smooth, and the temperature was measured at 1200 degrees. How could we hope to walk on this? It was too preposterous. I was glad I'd only come to watch.

We circled the fire pit and chanted. No one wanted to be first. I wondered if anyone would find the courage. Suddenly Charmaine was at the top of the pit quietly chanting and focusing on the far end of the coals. Then it happened. She stepped onto the coals and kept walking, slowly, not rushing, the full twelve feet. As she stepped off, a cheer went up, and she went around and repeated it. She was followed by Tore and another, and another. A line of people followed, and no injuries. The lady in the long, full skirt walked eight times, and the fabric did not catch fire. Everyone had walked, except me and one other person. I had only come to watch anyway.

Some people walked slow, some people ran, some people danced. One person cartwheeled through the coals, and then he did the most amazing thing. He stepped onto the coals and stood there in one place, reached down and lifted up a handful of coals and threw them into the air. Then he quietly walked off the fire pit - unharmed.

This went on for a couple of hours. It was like a dream. My mind had no place to file this scene. Could I do it too? Did I have enough faith and concentration? I didn't know. I did not feel afraid. But I also did not feel compelled to walk. Even so, I had removed my shoes and socks. Was that significant?

Then a voice was calling out "last call It's time to go in and dance." Charmaine stepped up to the pit again, and this time I stepped out beside her and took her hand. We looked briefly at each other. She squeezed my hand, and I began to walk. We moved together, not too fast, casually.

The coals crunched under my feet, and I was about to step off the pit, already at the other end. I did it! I had actually walked on 1200 degree coals, and my feet were intact - not even a blister. Now everyone was cheering for ME! I knew I was about to begin rethinking reality. There was no other choice.

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