Hello All!

I am sorry about skipping our final session last Sunday! So many things going on! All good things! Let's dive into this week's session!

Prayer:

I used to think that prayer was all about asking for stuff. Not anymore! Now I see it as a form of COMMUNICATION with the

great Spirit that is us. Melody Beattie, in her book Finding Your Way Home, reminds us that prayer changes things! In fact... she says it doesn't just

change things for us, but also for the world. When you find yourself in a situation where you are lost, afraid, or unhappy Melody suggests stopping,

withdrawing from the battle of emotions and praying. Pray to whomever you feel comfortable with God, Jesus, Spirit, Creator or to your higher self.

This brings a new energy into you and the situation. This shines light into your soul and also your world. Ask for help! Ask for guidance, strength, love, peace and wisdom.

You can say a ritualized prayer, or have an informal talk about what is happening. If you like, you can right a note to yourself in your SSK Handbook about what you need

to pray about most when you are in a difficult situation. You could even write out the prayer you need to hear. Write out a favorite prayer or chant and put it in your SSK.

You can also find prayers in books or online that you can use when you need spiritual help. I purchased a tiny, pocket bible to put inside my Soul Survival Kit. I will mark the

pages I need when I need guidance.Once you have prayed... talked to a greater wisdom then your own... believe that you have been heard. Believe in your heart and mind that you have

connected with this higher power and that this higher power will give you what you need.

Here is a prayer by Saint Francis:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

You might create a sacred place in your home to pray. Melody says that "the act of creating a sacred space to honor the sacred

and holy in your home will symbolize honoring that divine space within yourself". She also suggests making prayer a habit or

establishing a routine for it so that when you are upset you will feel quite comfortable with communication with the divine.

Surrendering Control:

Surrendering control is a path that leads to home. You can call it letting go, letting go and letting God, nonresistance, humility, letting things

happen or any number of other things ... but what it means is that you are giving up the attachment to an outcome. You give up the need to totally

control every aspect of life. Attempting to control every outcome of every situation is an overwhelming task! It will take every bit of your energy

and then leave you unsatisfied because you can never really achieve control over everything. Melody says we can practice something called nonresistance!

When we are resisting we are putting much energy in trying to make sure something does not happen. This is ok when you have control over the situation.

But this is much wasted energy if it is a person or situation that you have no control over. She suggests writing about this situation. You can write yourself

a note in your handbook about what it is that you are trying to resist. Being aware of what it is we are trying to resist can help us to bring ourselves back

into harmony. Be honest with yourself. What is it that you don't like about this person or situation. Once you understand your feelings about it, then move in

a direction to be able to work through your feelings and let the negativity of the situation go. Melody advises us to stay calm and take time to get clear about what is

happening. She says to work on accepting your feelings and taking as much time as you need to work through. Instead of reacting to negative situations she shares

that we should move more in a direction of action; keeping your heart open and sending whatever negative vibes are coming at you love. Melody says "reversing the energy of a situation can sometimes create magnificent results, much sweeter than you could have imagined and more divine that the results won through power plays or through putting on the gloves and going into the ring".

The Power of Gratitude:

Melody says we should try to be grateful for everything... not just the things we like. Taking the energy to complain about things we do not like robs us of

energy we could be using to change those things or coming to terms with them if they can't be changed. Taking the time to live in gratitude daily keeps us

constantly in a state of peace and harmony and aids us when things go wrong. She suggests making a routine of gratitude and praise such as doing this in the

morning, at noon or in the evening. Whisper, sing or write about how grateful you are and if you don't feel it at first that is ok... keep on saying how grateful you

are until it soaks through your whole being!

The last section of our SSK Handbook is for our gratitude list! Use this section frequently to list all the things, people, places and situations that you are truly grateful

for. You could also put some pictures in this section of your handbook that make your heart grateful. You could put pictures of your family, your pets, your home or friends.

You could tape tickets from the fair, or movies, or from a trip you took that you are so very grateful for. You could list the lessons in life that you have learned that have

enriched your heart and mind. You could write about the people in your life that you are most grateful for. Being grateful is sending out positive vibrations out into the world.

Imagine what kind of world we could have if we all took the time to be grateful for each other and all that we are fortunate to have.

Forgiveness:

Learn to forgive yourself and others. Forgiveness sets everyone free! Melody says that "conscious forgiveness and praying for a blessing on the other person and ourselves can

bring a tremendous amount of healing energy into any situation." She also says that this requires an open heart and that we deal with our fear and dread. Melody

suggests making a list of all the people you need or want to forgive. She recommends using a powerful exercise that will help release you and others from the past.

"See yourself in a room of white light, talking to each person. Picture God, Mary, Jesus, Buddha - and saint or person you consider holy - with you in the room. She the person you're with asking you to forgive them for anything they've ever said, felt, thought, or done that has in any way caused you harm or pain. See yourself forgiving them and telling them that from your heart. Stay with the process until you can sit it and mean it. Go through all your emotions and objections in your mind. That's what you need to heal and release. Then see yourself asking that person to forgive you for anything you've ever said or done that's in any way caused them harm or pain. Mean what you say. Stay in our visualization until you can see the other person granting you forgiveness from his or her own heart, too. Then turn to God, and ask God to forgive you from anything you've done that's caused that person harm or pain. Stay with this process until you feel how forgiven you are."

Risk Love:

Melody says "live dangerously; risk love". Write in your handbook what you think about love. The good things and the bad things, what disappointments and rejections you have had in life. Write about people you wanted to love but have felt you couldn't. Write about people who have loved you and then left you. What is it about love that you believe? She says to "work at healing and releasing your feelings about lost love and dead dreams until you can give, receive, and manifest real love in your life." Have you closed your heart to anyone because the love you needed was not given? Have you given up on loving someone who has been unloving to you? Have you stopped loving God because you have been hurt? Risk love again! Ask God to open your heart to love. Open your heart to yourself first and then open it to others. Melody says to stay aware of what you are thinking and feeling. This is a great time to write yourself a note in your handbook. Encourage yourself to love... to be open and to risk loving others. Be open to all experiences that can help you to open your heart to love: it might come in the form of a movie, a book, an experiencer or trip. Sometimes it is us that stands in the way of our own healing. Love yourself first. Be gentle with yourself. Allow yourself to go through all the emotions you need to so that you can open and heal your heart. It is when you have healed your own heart that you can begin to truly love others. Take all the time you need. You are so very worth the work it takes to change your life!

The End or is it the Beginning?

We have reached the end of our Soul Survival Kit workshop! By now you should have a box that you can go to when you are afraid, hurt or upset. You have a handbook that you can open and read what you have written to yourself! You have things in this box that you will use to help heal your heart and life. This box is a work in progress... continue to add to it. Continue to write notes to yourself. Continue to look at your little card-deck book of joy. Continue to be grateful for everything you have. Continue to forgive... risk love.... and bring more peace into your heart and life! It's really a new beginning....

Be Blessed and also be a blessing!

Namaste

Welcome to SSK session # 5: Healing Fear

Hello everyone and welcome to SSK session # 5! I hope you are building your soul survival it and remembering that this is a place you can run to when you are upset or need comforting. It is perfect for that but also for going to when you feel reflective about your life, when you feel confused, discouraged or even joyful. It will be the joyful times when you write notes to yourself that will help and guide you when you have fallen. When you are strong, fearless, and filled to overflowing with happiness... remember your soul survival kit. Remember to write to yourself strong, encouraging words so that you will be there when you need comfort or help.

Make Top Ten Lists:

In her book, Finding Your Way Home, Melody Beattie talks about making some top ten lists! Take your handbook, and in the notes to self section work on these lists:

1.) List the last 10 things you told yourself that you had to have.

2.) Make a list of 10 times in your life that you “were ecstatic, out of your mind with happiness and joy, glowing with the golden pink aura of love, on a spiritual high from some lesson you learned, or feeling the hand of God guiding your life.”

3.) List 10 things you really wanted the money for because it would benefit yourself and someone else. (this list can include using money to take care of your children, buying something needed for your home or to make someone else happy. Or if could included taking a course or training in order to help people.)

What Melody wants us to see is that accumulating enough money to have things to make you happy is not what life is all about. She says to look at list #1 and think about how long that thing made you truly happy. List #2 shows you what has been most important to you, as well as what your life has been about. List #3 gives you some idea of where you would spend money while using it to add to list #2.

Release the Belief that You Are a Victim:

Write yourself a note asking that you stop thinking of yourself as a victim. Melody says that even though we can’t always control everything... this does not mean that we are victims. Each of us has access to power and that power is free and at your disposal whenever you need it. There may be some hard choices to make. We may have to leave people or things or situations that are not good for us. There might be a price to pay, but that price is not nearly as high as staying in a place where we feel victimized.

Feeling victimized makes you stop growing as a person. It robs you of all that life should be for you. It steals your joy, self confidence and self respect. Don’t give all these things away to someone else. Take back your joy... take back your self confidence... take back your self respect by refusing to feel victimized by anyone! You are in charge of your own life. You are responsible for your own happiness. You are the one who can change what is happening in your world. You are the only one that can change your mind about what life is like.

Elinor Roosevelt said, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”  And this goes for making you feel like a victim too. Someone wise once said, “don’t let someone negative and toxic rent space in your head”. Same goes for your life.

Healing Fear:

Fear is a BIG subject. It can keep you from thinking straight, feeling right, taking the next step, making decisions for your life and it can disconnect you from your heart, mind and soul. Melody says that “acknowledging and feeling your anxiety and fear means half the battle is won.” Once you know you are in fear you can begin to bring yourself back into balance. This is the start of healing fear.

Melody suggests that fear starts out as one tiny thought. Then the mind gets a hold of that thought and starts to feed it until it consumes us. If we can catch the thought before it gets to be all consuming then we can put ourselves back onto the path of healing peace. We can honor and acknowledge our fear... we don’t have to ignore it or wish it away. Facing it head on sometimes brings us the strength we need to overcome it. She says the solution is simple: Face, feel, and heal fear.

In Finding Your Way Home, Melody wants us to learn to consciously recognize our fear. See it for what it is... then begin to let it out. Talk to someone you trust, go to your SSK and write a note to yourself, or talk to God. We need to “let out the steam and pressure that fear can build up in your body, mind and soul.” Feel the fear... face it.... talk about it... then let it go. Breathe deeply. She suggests walking around and gathering a few things that make you feel safe: a picture, a blanket, a treasure that reminds you of how safe and loved you are. Write yourself a note in your handbook that you can go to when you are afraid. Write all the things in this note that you know help you to feel safe. An example might be: I don’t have to act on this situation now.... I can think about it for a few days and then act on it. (this is one of the things I tell myself if I slip into fear).

Melody suggests again to put some comfort items in your SSK. Pictures of happy moments, trinkets that mean very much to you, a rosary, a bible (I bought a tiny one for my SSK at the dollar store).

Also, important in an attack of fear is consciously breathing deeply. This will help to release the fear from your body and also from your mind.

One last idea... write a letter to your fear in your SSK handbook. Ask it if it is trying to teach you something and then listen to the answer. You will need quiet; it may take some time. Be patient. Learning to hear your soul speak when it is frightened is just as important then listening to it when it is joyful and at peace.

Make lists, release beliefs of victimization, and heal your fear! You can do all this and more with your Soul Survival Kit. Make it your go to place to find comfort when you need it most. Write your prayers, include your artwork, pictures that bring you peace and things that give you strength. Next weekl will conclude our SSK workshop, but I want you to keep working on your kit and keep it where you can easily get to it when you need it. You may even decide to share it with someone you love that needs comfort.(we are going to use the last section of our SSK handbook next week!)

Until next week... practice happiness, practice love, practice peace!

I wanted you to know that the last SSK Session #4 Tools to Use, did not post correctly in the email. To read the full session you had to click on the title! I am trying to get this fixed so that the whole post gets emailed out to you! But I wanted you to know just in case you did not realize this and thought that the post was odd... and short! :-(

I hope this will be fixed before Sunday's new post.... but if not, please click on the title to see the full session!

Thank you for taking this journey with me! love, stephanie (The Joyuslion)

Welcome to SSK session # 4: Tools to Use

Asking for Help:

Asking for help. We are not taught that... not to ask for help when it comes to our souls hurting. We try to appear normal... we withdraw inside ourselves and dig even deeper in the hole we find ourselves in. Melody says, “ Ask for help in understanding where to go and what to create next”. Go to someone you trust with your whole self and talk to them... tell them how you are feeling... let them listen to your heart; sometimes this is all you need. Sometimes your wisdom will lead you... you just need to hear it out loud! You can also go to God with your questions, pain and confusion. Praying is not about asking for something as much as it is communication with the Big All That Is. Melody says after doing this pay close attention to what you feel... what you want... and where you feel led to go. She says sometimes a dream will be your answer... sometimes a hope growing in your heart. Be conscious of what is going on in your soul. Be aware! Be waiting for answers! They will come! I promise you! Listen.

Mantras:

I found an article that completely explains Mantras here: http://www.sanskritmantra.com/what.htm

This is really worth a read if you have a few moments! This is from the article:

Definition #3: Mantras are tools of power and tools for power.

They are formidable. They are ancient. They work. The word "mantra" is derived from two Sanskrit words. The first is "manas" or "mind," which provides the "man" syllable. The second syllable is drawn from the Sanskrit word "trai" meaning to "protect" or to "free from." Therefore, the word mantra in its most literal sense means "to free from the mind." Mantra is, at its core, a tool used by the mind which eventually frees one from the vagaries of the mind.
But the journey from mantra to freedom is a wondrous one. The mind expands, deepens and widens and eventually dips into the essence of cosmic existence. On its journey, the mind comes to understand much about the essence of the vibration of things. And knowledge, as we all know, is power. In the case of mantra, this power is tangible and wieldable.

Melody provides mantras at then end of each chapter of her book, Finding Your Way Home. But she also recommends writing your own! She says the mantra can be simple, for example: I am guided and led. She suggests creating the energy you need for the moment. If you are feeling vulnerable and afraid make up one like: I am safe.

Let’s make up some that we know will help us when we need to comfort our souls. You know you. You know what it is that hurts your soul. In your SSK handbook write some mantras that you know will help you when you are upset. Put these in the Notes to Self section.

Here are some of mine: I Comfort My Own Soul.  There is something here for me to learn. I am making progress.

Here are some of Melody’s: I am choosing freedom. I am visualizing what would make me feel good. I am becoming what I choose. I am manifesting all that I am.

A Letter to God, or Your Guardian Angel, or Your Higher Self:

Writing is a very powerful way to change your reality. It brings what you are thinking and feeling into the realm of being. It is also a way to see what is going on inside of you. Melody suggests writing a letter to God or your Guardian Angel. “Say whatever you want or need to say--about what you’re going through, about what you want or need. You’re activating the relationship with a letter and with the power of words.... Don’t worry about getting the words right or about what to say. The leap of faith of initiating that relationship by writing a letter can be extremely powerful and will help the relationship feel more real.” She also suggests putting the letter into an envelope, sealing it, putting it somewhere safe (your SSK). When you need to, open it and remind yourself that you are not alone.

Create a Protective Field Around You:

Do you feel safe and protected? Did you as a child? If not, Melody suggests invoking the blessing of protective energy in your life and energy field. When you feel threatened, sad, upset, disappointed or hurt go to your SSK and surround yourself with protection. Imagine a field around you that is loving, healing and protective. It doesn’t mean you are going to immediately feel better... but it can begin to calm your mind and heart. Melody suggests carrying an item with you that represents safety and protection. It could be a purple string tied around your wrist, a small stone in your pocket,  a crystal, a religious item or a picture of someone who gives you strength. If you are an artist it could be an item you made that brings you peace.  I also have found inspirational jewelry to be very comforting. A friend from Canada sent me a necklace with the symbol for, and the word HARMONY. Once, when I was going through a tough time I wore that necklace everyday for a week. Look for and find items that bring feelings of safety and protection to you. Keep these in your SSK so that when you need them you will know where to find them.

That’s it for this week! We are building Soul Survival Kits that we will keep for the rest of our lives. These kits are going to be a place we can go to when we need comfort! Who better to know what comforts us then US!? Learn to ask for help! Write a mantra that you can go to when you need encouragement! When you are upset, write a letter in your handbook to God, an Angel or Your Higher Self. Create a protective field around you when you need it. Let your healing begin inside this field.

Practice peace and fill your heart with joy!

Welcome to SSK session # 3: Staying Balanced and Clear.

Staying balanced and clear is monumentous on the journey to peace! Often, when things happen us to shake our peace we take a downward spiral until we reach the bottom of the pit of unhappiness. It is very hard to control, even if we are consciously trying to to that. But if we can lay down a foundation of staying balanced and clear we will be prepared for the times when that downward spiral tries to start.

Commitment, People, Places and Things:

Melody Beattie says it all begins with making a commitment to staying clear and balanced. She explains in her book, Finding Your Way Home, that just as we have people, places, and things that validate our soul, we also carry within us a list of people, places and things that keep us from being the person we know we are. She says we can lose our connection to ourselves and the world around us when we are in the presence of such people, places or things. You know the feelings you get when this happens. You stiffen, and your mind goes foggy. Your heart feels sick, and you may even get physically ill. You know something is wrong. Having a commitment to staying clear and balanced means you work to correct this state in your life. No one is going to sit you down and tell you what is wrong. No one is going to hand you a printed list of the right things to do to make the situation better. This would be great... even much easier but staying balanced and clear takes work. Years of unhealthy thinking, acting, and speaking will not change over night. And it is you, you, you.... who must lead the way to peace and happiness. You have everything you need inside of you to take care of you! Everything! And you have all the strength you need to do it too. Start today to make a commitment to your health and happiness. When you find yourself with people, places or things that are toxic to your wellbeing take steps to rid these things from your life.

It’s up to you to do it Beloved! In your SSK handbook, notes section, write out some people, places or things that are toxic to your wellbeing. What can you do to minimize or remove these things from your life.

Your List of Soul Connections:

Just as important as knowing what poisons your soul is knowing what nourishes it too.
Make a list in your SSK Handbook, notes sections, of what people, places and things feeds your soul and reminds you of who you want to be. This can be a 12 step meeting, visit to a favorite restaurant, of objects that help us move into a higher level of accepting how we are. Melody says, “What are the people, places and things in your life that help your soul remember who it is and wants to be? Make a list. Put it in your SSK. These people are your soul mates. These places are your holy sites. These objects are your spiritual items.” Make a list of the people who feed your soul. Write about places that bring you back to who you really are or place some postcards or photos of these places in your SSK Handbook. If you have special objects that bring you peace... put them in your SSK. Some people like stones, or sea shells, or a certain piece of jewelry.   

Become Clear on Your Intentions and Visualize What You Want:

Melody says, “ The spoken word, the written word, and pictures are powerful ways of creating reality.” She says we need to learn to write, say and envision what it is that we want until the words and pictures become clear to us. The power of saying what we want and then picturing it in our minds can’t be overstated. You can write out what you want in your SSK handbook and also place pictures there to reinforce what it is that you wrote about. Melody suggests making lists of what is it that you want and emphasizing all the details. This makes it clear to your heart, mind and soul about what it is that you really want. Some people create vision boards to be reminded visually of the intentions they have. Whether you write it out in words or use pictures.... be clear about it! Using both is very powerful.

Happiness Reminders:

What makes you happy? If you sat and thought about all the things that make you happy in your life right now.... what would they be? Often when we are upset or confused we lose track of what it is that really makes us happy. Having a reminder of this is a wonderful tool to use to get you heart and mind back on track.... the track of peace. Here is a fun little project that you can make to put in your SSK to remind you when you are sad or upset that life is beautiful.... things aren’t as bad as our minds portray.

My Beautiful Life Book Project:

Often when we are upset we focus on what is going wrong in our lives. This makes a distorted reality in our minds. Our emotions start to run hay-wire and life seems so hopeless. This is the time you want to pull out your Soul Survival Kit!!!! And this little book is going to remind you of all the beautiful things, people and activities in your life that make you happy. As I was looking through my cards (because I had printed some words twice) I could feel the happiness rise up inside of me.... JUST BY SIFTING THROUGH THEM. These are the things that make me happy! Here is how you can make your very own Beautiful Life Book to put into your SSK!

Supplies:

Deck of Cards - new or used

1” Binder Rings - from office supply store

Hole Puncher

Optional: Paint, Gesso, Markers, Scrapbook Papers, Vellum Paper

The very first thing I did was cover the front and back of my cards with Gesso. I used different directions for my paint strokes and I made sure to leave lots of the card show through. I did one side ... let that dry and then did the backs.

Then I punched the holes for my little book. I did this by taking one of the cards and punching holes about a half an inch from the top and bottom of the left side of the card. I put mine about a quarter of an inch away from the left edge. Then I used this card for my template to punch the holes in all the others. Take your time with this and you will keep the holes more uniform. (occasionally I punched the wrong side because that is just me! LOL! If you do that ... just go ahead and punch the other side... no biggie!)

Then, I started printing out my words. I used words that make me happy.

I used serious words like: Practicing Peace, Wisdom, and Consciousness. And I used not so serious words like: Chocolate Chip Cookies, Shopping and Snow.

In a Word document I used an 18 point, Handwriting font, and spaced my words about 2 inches apart, with 2 columns. I printed my words onto vellum because I wanted a see through effect on my cards, but you could use decorated papers, plain paper, or you could even just write these words on the cards with a black permanent marker. (be careful with this.... test out the marker to make sure it will dry on the card and not be wiped off).

I cut all all the words and at first tried gluing one down on my cards. I did not like the look, as it sort of bubbled up a little bit. So I went with using a dry, 2 sided, adhesive. (you can purchase little dispensers of this at Michael’s or Jo Anne’s.)

As soon as you have all your words adhered you can put the cards in the order you would like them in your book. I wanted my words to be in a random order, but I also wanted the Red and Black cards evenly dispersed throughout the book.

Next, you will make your little book covers. Take one card and use it as a template on card stock, scrapbook, or decorative paper. Trace around it making sure to trace on the wrong side of decorated paper. Then punch the holes using the finished card to know where to place them. WARNING: for the back cover, you will want the holes to be punched on the RIGHT side of the card!!!!

Now, you are ready to thread the cards onto the binder rings! This is the fun part! :-) Make sure the back and front covers are threaded correctly and close the rings. Isn’t your little book cool!!!!

I decorated the front cover of my book with a little metal book plate. I used tiny heart brads to adhere it. Then, I cut a little piece of card stock to make the title of my book: Happy.

To finish the book I added ribbons and twine to the binder rings.

Use your imagination to make your book yours! Use colors you like and make sure the words you use are ones you love. This little book will come in handy when you are feeling lost and hopeless in your life. You will be able to go through it and be reminded of all the things about your life you love!

That’s it for this week! I hope you are enjoying building your Soul Survival Kit! This is something you can use for the rest of your life! And as always, take these lessons and projects and taylor them to how you do things. If you are a painter.... paint your Beautiful Life book project... if you like photography... take pictures of things that keep you clear and balanced. If you art-journal... make an art journal book of what makes you happy! Make it yours.... it is for your soul survival!

Until next week.... namaste Beloved!

Hello everyone and welcome to SSK Session 2! In this session we are going to talk about making contact with our souls. I believe that a substantial amount of our lack of peace rests with the fact that we are not in contact with our soul. In her book, Melody says, “I lived life separated from my instincts, other than the primal and basic instincts of survival -- putting together a home, reaching my career goals, dealing with day to day business of raising a family and living a life. I was trying to survive physically in the material, temporal world.

I didn’t know my soul was trying to survive, too.”

She goes on to say that she felt separate and separated by something -- from God. Melody talks about her journey home, “a conscious walking of the spiritual path and seeking to make connection with my soul”. For her this all began with a relentless pain in her back which sent her to bed for weeks, crying for days at a time. Then she was amazed at the healing that occurred when she started to listen to her body. She then connected the dots and realized that the health in her body actually reflected from the emotions she was experiencing. She learned that we also have something called our emotional body. When this body is sick, so can become our physical body. So she set about exploring her emotional body. She writes, “ I was now actually becoming conscious of, accepting, feeling, and releasing my emotional energy -- letting it pass fluidly through me.”

Then Melody set about doing the hard work... working through past painful emotions. She knew that these were the keys to her emotional freedom. She worked through a process she called “healing the soul”. She realized that her belief system sometimes sabotaged her spiritual health. “I am separate from God. Life has to be hard. I’m a victim. I deserve to be punished”, were some of the beliefs she had to release. It took her years. Years! She writes, “over the years that followed, I realized I had done more than contact my emotional body and more than connect with my physical body. I had jumped off a cliff into an unknown void. But jumping into this void, I had made conscious contact with my soul.”

Melody also shares how she came to understand the process of using affirmations and the power of words to help change ourselves at a cellular level. She says the most powerful mantra or affirmation we can speak are the two little words: I Am.

Journaling, Letters to Yourself:

Melody strongly recommends using journaling to make contact with our soul. The SSK handbook, section 1, Notes to Self, is for this... but I take her concept a step farther. Let me explain. When we get upset by the same things over and over again our rational mind is desperately seeking clarity and understanding about that person, situation or event. Every time it happens the same thing occurs, whether it is you crying, or becoming depressed, or feeling like giving up. Now.... the wisest part of you... your soul/spirit knows what you need to know to comfort you. Sit down with your SSK handbook and write yourself a letter as if you are someone else writing to you about this upsetting thing. Let your soul/spirit come outside of you and look down on you and comfort you and give you wisdom. For me it has to do with how my husband treats me sometimes. Every once in a while he will be upset with life and when this happens he can be mean. I used to get very, very upset every time this happened. I took it personally and allowed it to hurt my soul. These occurrences made huge rifts in our marriage until my soul/spirit talked to me and told me what I needed to know about these times. My most wisest self told my rational mind that his unhappiness was not with me... but with the world... or himself. It told me to write myself a letter when I was whole and healed from the pain of these times so that I could read it when my rational mind was hurt and upset. This procedure has really helped my heart and our marriage.

Write yourself a letter... from your soul/spirit to your rational mind about something that regularly upsets you! Write this letter in your SSK manual, in the Letters to Self section. Take some time and really let your heart speak to your mind. Let your heart impart both wisdom and comfort to your mind about why this is happening and what you can do about it. Tap into the wisest part of you and share that part with the part of you that hurts. This Wise One inside of you can change your world... both within and without.

Dreaming:

Melody also suggests that we pay close attention to what it is we dream about. This is going to be the second section of our SSK Handbook: Dreams. There are times in our lives when we dream certain dreams. For years I dreamt of a haunted house across the street from me. I would go over to this house in my dreams and would walk through it and climb the stairs to a room that was especially haunted. Once, I dreamt of sitting in a room there with many souls that had passed on from this life.

Writing down dreams that seem much more then just random thoughts can be very revealing to our souls. It is not necessary to understand or interpret the dreams. Just write them down because perhaps one day you will be given an understanding of that dream. Also, Melody suggests programing yourself before you fall asleep to remember your dreams. It is very important to write the dream down in the Dreams section of your handbook, because as time passes you will forget the details and importance of the aspects of your dream very quickly.

Melody also suggests programing your dreams for answers to things we may need help with in our lives. I was really, really sick a few months ago and had very real, vivid dreams. Before I went to bed one night I asked the question: what is it that I should be doing in my life right now? That night, I dreamt that I was sitting at a desk and all around me in the room were boxes of varying sizes. The boxes filled the room from floor to ceiling in some sections of the room. I was sitting at the desk taking one box at a time and putting it into one of three piles. This was a very clear answer to me about what it was that I should be doing in my life: organizing it. I also had some very strong answers to questions that week in other dreams... but I did not write them down and sadly I can’t recall them now. This is why it is soooo important to write them down. Don’t worry about the sense they do or don’t make... capture them on paper so you can reflect about what the message is from your soul to your rational mind.

When we make attempts to contact our souls we can find things out about ourselves that we did not previously know! The wisdom from our souls will begin to seep into our everyday lives and this will bring us peace.

Melody write, “ All roads lead home. And all the forces in the universe are now urging, conspiring, twisting, turning, pulling, and pushing to get us there. Whether that desire manifests externally, as the longing to live and work in the right place, or internally, as a resurgence of interest in the soul, it’s time to go home”.

“It’s time to remember who we are, and what we came here to do.

It’s time to stop living from our heads, functioning on automatic pilot, and acting out of fear.

It’s time to remember and activate our soul’s purpose for being here.

That’s what finding our way home means.”

For next week please have your deck of cards, two 1” binder rings, hole punch and optional supplies: paint, decorative papers, two sided adhesive tape, markers. We are gonna have some fun!!!!! Until then ... write yourself a letter, program your dreams and always, always, always Practice Peace Dear Beloved! xo

ps.... Digital Artist William Charlebois made this wonderful piece from SSK Session 1

I added the yellow letters to my box. It is 11 inches by 9 inches. Yours can be bigger.... I would not go much smaller.

A small notebook preferably with 3 sections and some pockets. If you can’t find that a regular small notebook will work because you can always make sections in it by folding a page to a point.... or use sticky tabs to divide. You can create pockets on the inside front and back covers. This is going to be our SSK Handbook. I decorated mine with flower and butterfly stickers inside. Make yours your own!

A deck of cards (dollar store), Binder rings (2), hole punch (craft papers, paint, markers optional).

Your Soul Survival Kit is going to be a place you can go to when you need comfort, direction, kindness, love and encouragement. It is wonderful to have people we can go to and talk things over with, but sometimes you may feel too alone to seek out communication with others. You might want to handle things on your own at times. Your box is going to be a place you can go to when you feel lost, alone, frightened, sad, depressed, confused, blue, upset, and also when you feel grateful too.

We are going to be adding items to our SSK for the next few months. Many of these are suggestions from Melody Beattie, and some will be from me. A word about our SSK contents: if you are a digital artist and you want to make digital art representing a passage or message for our kits, then make a digital art piece to put in your kit. Just make sure it will fit in the box! If you do mixed media then use this to taylor items for your kit.

The first section in our SSK Handbook is going to be Notes to Self. Deep inside of you is a wise, ageless soul. We can tap into our wise soul and it can help us with things that happen in our lives. Melody says, “help bridge the gap between your conscious mind and your soul with a guided meditation”. Here is the meditation to help you do just that. You can copy and paste it into a word document and cut it out to the size of your Handbook, or you can print out this page and cut it out. This will go into our Handbook either in a pocket or adhered to a page in our Notes to Self section.

“Picture yourself standing at the entrance to a bridge, a walkway across a chasm. You can make the bridge as high or as low or as wide or narrow as you want. But to get to the other side, you need to step unto the bridge and walk across. The side you’re standing on is a little dark. It’s familiar, but it’s not where you want to be anymore. Even if you have some fear, envision yourself feeling excited and curious to get to the other side. You may not be able to see what’s on the other side clearly yet, but it looks greener, lighter, happier over there. Feel your desire and determination to cross the bridge.

Picture yourself walking, safely taking each step, or running (if you want to run) across the bridge. Stay with yourself each step of the way. Hold the railing if you like, or run freely down the middle of the bridge. But take each step until you get to the other side. When you get to the other side, keep walking until you are completely off the bridge and your feet are planted on solid ground. Giver yourself a moment to look back at where you’ve come from. Smile and wave at anyone, or anything, you’ve left behind. Bless them. Release them. Don’t worry about who you’ve left behind; when they’re ready to cross, their bridge will appear. Turn around, and smile, and take a moments to enjoy the beauty you see and feel on this new side.

Know you’re safe. You have successfully crossed the bridge. Your feet are planted on solid ground. Feel yourself surrounded by people who love you. You may not be able to see their faces or recognize who they are yet, but you can feel their love. Feel yourself surrounded by trees, mountains, sunshine, and birds. You may not know exactly what you’re going to find on this new side, but you feel secure. Know and trust that it will be good.”

This mediation can be used for many situations: when you know you need to do something and are afraid, when you know you should do something, when you are afraid to do something, or when you feel stuck. It is something you will have in your Soul Survival Kit that you can use over and over again to get you mind and soul functioning in rhythm. Practice this meditation and then remember it and use it when you need to.

So for this week have your box, your SSK Handbook and your first meditation. Cherish the journey we are about to take. Believe that you are going to find the peace you have been searching for. Rejoice that you are going to take good care of you and remember.... the ride is only as good as the scenery!  And that is up to you!

It's coming April 1st and it's free!!!!

You ever need comfort and no one is around?

You ever get upset and need to be reminded of what the right thing

to be doing is?

You ever wish your best friend lived next door so you could run

over when you needed them?

You ever get tired of being hurt by the same things over and over again?

Me toooooo!

Pack up because we're going home!

We are going to create a kit that will help our soul survive in tough times!

We are going to make our own, go to place, for health and healing!

We are going to set up a place where we can run when we are tired,

confused, upset or just down right scared.

What you will need to begin the workshop with is a box. One about the

size of a large shoe box. You can get a decorated one at Michael's, decorate your

own shoe box or use a treasure box you already have. Just make sure it is a box you love!

This workshop will have weekly sessions that will provide you with the time you

will need to but your kit together.

If you are subscribed to this blog then you are already signed up for the workshop!

If you are not, all you have to do to participate is subscribe to this blog!

We are going to teach our souls not only to survive... but to thrive!

It's about awareness! It's about being conscious of what we are doing and saying.

It's about finding peace and happiness!

We are gonna ROCK THIS WORKSHOP!

Can't wait! See you April 1st! No Joke! :-)

Dear Courageous Girl (and guys),

Something that is very difficult, but very very good, is that once we take responsibility for our own lives, miracles can happen. One of the things that keeps us stuck is when we assign blame or when we let ourselves believe that others have the control or when we think that situations in our lives can never be changed and are past the point of being able to improve.

Dear, sweet friend, it is a waste of our one beautiful life to blame others, to envy others, to compare ourselves with others or to sit and feel bad about ourselves. If we want things around us to change, we have to start with our own amazing self. We really only have control over our own actions, our own decisions, our own behaviors. We can not control anyone else or anything else, but we can do so much when we take careful and meticulous and gentle responsibility for our own lives.

Love your phenomenal self enough to do this, friend. You are so worth it.

You are so very loved.

xoxo



A message from your friends at the Brave Girls Club - www.bravegirlsclub.com

Have peace Beloved!

Original Digital artwork with graphics from Crowabout StudioB at DeviantScrap

A dear friend of mine recently shared this phrase with me and it has

changed my life! It has shifted the idea of seeking love, to living it.

It is knowing on a cellular level that every moment of every day you are

so extremely loved. You don't have to feel it to know it; all you have to do

is realize it!

Being loved is waaay different then giving love. Often, when we give love

it is from an unhealed heart. And this is ok because we are all on the road

to recovery, we are all on the road home. But BEING LOVED is something

that is pure, spiritual, and infinite.

Hebrews chapter 12 of the bible says, "since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,

let us throw off everything that hinders".

I believe that this cloud of witnesses is constantly surrounding us with the greatest love ever made!

This is why we are never alone. This is why you can live loved. You cannot see them,

but I assure you that they are there! Loving you, cheering you on, and helping you when they can.

Let me tell you a little story of mine. When my three children were little we were taking a walk

in the country side near our home. No one else was around for miles. My youngest child was about

three years old and he was walking over to a telephone pole, toward a box on it at his level. I did not see this

as I was looking at my other two children when I heard a very audible, male voice yell something. I quickly

ran over to where my child was and he had pulled his hand back totally scared. He had not touched the

box on the pole! I was shaken because there was no one around.... no one!

That night, a crew from the electric company were out at this pole fixing something!

I firmly believe that there is a love surrounding us that we know very little about.

Some may call it Angels, some may call it God, some may call it miracles.... whatever

you want to call it... it is here!

My Friend.... don't look for love, live it.

Don't yearn for love, live it.

Don't grieve for love, live it.

Live Loved, walk in it, know it in your heart and live like it!

There is peace here Beloved, waiting for you to discover!

For your journal today:

Write the date and this:

I am going to LIVE LOVED!

Finally, I can rest and walk toward: _____________________.

What would it mean if there is love all around me? _________________.

I am going to live as if all the love in the world was for me, because it is.

Write as little, or as much, as you feel led to. Remember that only you possess

the ability to live loved!

Have peace.

This post ends our Recovery Workshop today! OH, what a wonderful

month it has been for me. I hope it has been for you as well. I would love to hear from

you about how you experienced this workshop if you would like to share it with me.

You can contact me at joyuslion@gmail.com or use the CONTACT ME link in the navigation bar.

As a thank you gift for taking this journey with me I would like for you to have the full size jpg of the artwork

for this post. You can download it for free here and print it out or have it printed.

http://www.box.com/s/897487380ff7fb479744

Live Loved... because you are.... so very much! xoxoxoxox