Under a ~Florida~ Sky

In the right place and at just the right time, miracles can and do occur.  We watch in wait for them.  We ALL do this.  We all wait for a miracle.  Some of us are waiting for the right "time" or "place" to make our move. 

We might take the advice that this is the moment to grab hold of what you desire and to live out your dreams.  This is (in general) good advice.  But there are many situations that we experience in which we should definitely exercise restraint and caution and patience.  With these matters, waiting becomes an act of CHOICE that empowers the patient soul.  There are times to restrain ourselves from seeking all of our desires.  The question is, What shall we do during the wait period?  I think there is only one answer:  CREATE.

Whatever you are doing, you are creating it.  So CREATE in every moment and do not be afraid to use your imagination and your gratitude.  If you cannot have what you wish for in the right now moment, or if you cannot live in the place you dream about living, or if you cannot be with the person you love....whatever it is you believe you are separated from...then give all of your loving energy to what is right in front of you.  I like to refer to this as PRACTICING.  In every experience and in every relationship you are having, you are simply practicing your ability to LOVE, respect and create.  These are your most valuable tools for life.  A recent Blog I read (not mine but that of a new, first-time blogger), I was reminded of a story that I read recently in "Mastery of Love".  This was the story of the Wise Master.  The wise master is in everything -and he is everywhere.  The one we adore and cherish is actually everyone...all around us..and we show our love for that special individual by loving everyone everyday.  If we love only one person and neglect to show love to others in need, we have failed at our mission in life.  Our love for others cannot be greedy.  It must be shared with all.

The main cause that separates us from others is our own EGO.  That ego of ours is the part we identify with "self".  Most people are just looking out for "self".  They are selfish, selfinterested and self-serving.  But if we want to learn from Masters (other human people who have overcome Ego and served Humanity), we must look to the example of Mother Theresa and Ghandi...to name only a few.  Let's follow Jesus, shall we?  Let's follow in these humble, ego-less footsteps.  They took care of everyone and anyone with a detachment that allowed them to be that amazing.  Detachment is an important skill to acquire.  Without detachment, your delivery system is going to derail over and over again.  Detachment means we do not take things personally.  Consider that.  Do a little research on the idea of detachment.  A healthy detachment does not cause separation but rather serves to equalize all people with one another...and not just people, but all living things.

Under the beautiful skies in Florida, I am discovering that Home (Rhode Island) and here...are different in many ways.  the differences are enriching and they fortify my soul.  They help me connect with my convictions.  I see people and my daily tasks in a whole new way.  You see, most people follow a pretty average schedule in life.  We awake and eat breakfast and go to work and come home.  We eat, spend time with family and occassionally engage in hobbies.  If we accidentally stumble over an opportunity to help another Living Creature, we feel a slight happiness from it.  We wonder why we feel empty and disconnected and why conflict keeps arising in our work environments and in our home life and in our social circle.  It seems that no matter who we surround ourselves with or who we replace so-and-so with, we encounter the same issues, difficulties and problems over and over again.  The reason is that what we are doing for
 "a living", is the very thing we need to adjust.

Under the skies of Florida, I have FELT the way life is different in other places, climates, communities and in other people's way of life too.  What I have learned is that our sadnesses and challenges follow us.  Our happiness is always with us.  The way to cultivate more of it is to place our focus on it...our attention and our concentration.  So when I mentioned the schedule most people keep, doesn't it feel familiar to you?  We all live this way.  We all have these same patterns.  The reason we ALL have these same troubles, patterns, feelings and habits is because we are all connected.  And all of us are connected INTO "the dream"...the Dream of "hell" that society has created for us to tap into.  We are all plugged into this giant circuit-board who's HUB is linked to the HiveMind of negativity and separation and fear.  The mass media feeds it.  Government feeds it.  Individuals feed it. Even religion feeds it. You know what doesn't exist in there? The SPIRIT and the SOUL inside of us...it has no connection to any of that.  It is polarized from it.  By disconnecting with one, we can CONNECT...or in our case, reconnect...with our Spirit and our SOUL.  This is the only way to happiness.  Here is where it will lead you:  Back to each other. 

Your purpose in life is to come to realize that YOU are the CREATOR.  You are CONNECTED..to every other man, woman, child, plant and animal in existence.  When you suffer, they suffer.  When you smile, they smile.  It takes time to make a wave...it takes shared energy to create it and that is what we are called to be doing right now.  If I do the work, but those around me do not, it is like me paddling a very large boat full of people and I am the only one paddling.  Meanwhile the HiveMind is actively causing resistance to my paddling.  So here I am...boat full of people...I am the only one paddling...and I have resistance from the 99% who live in the Dream of Hell.  So how effective will I be unless I can help convince my fellow passengers to pick up an oar and do the work with me?  We are getting sucked into the dream of hell as a planet.  America itself is built on the idea of Achieving for the Self Alone.  I despise this idea.  I love my country, but Capitalism can cause corruption when we lose sight of the ideals of taking care of our people.  It will take a collective effort to really see change. 

As for me, I will continue to live a life built around faith in the Universal bonds we all share and the hearts of the Awakened people who want us to have a better planet and a better society.  I will always steer my ship away from the storm of the Dream the world has fed us, and I will choose to live my life in accordance with my inner beliefs and my Spirit and my Soul.  These can and will lead us if we listen and trust our feelings.  Ask yourself what inspires you?  What motivates you to keep going every day?  What is your muse, or who is your muse?  Grab that spark of enthusiasm you feel when you are truly motivated and inspired, and just see what you can make of it.  You are a great creator.  The Aquarius New Moon arrives soon to inspire us all and I for one will be meditating for UNITY.  You take care of me and I will take care of you.  The better care you give me, the better care I give you and so on and so forth.  We are not separate from our fellow man.  We are all one.  We are ALL connected.

Peace and Unity to all.

Lilac

Shine a Light into the Dark Places

In this hectic world we live in, it is beneficial to rely on our instincts to create our lives.  I want to discuss an idea in this Post that involves practical application fo faith.  I often talk about how we must believe that things are possible...but as we all know, we MUST also take action as well.  HOW we live out our choices defines who we are and what we are made of.  I am reminded of the movie, "Groundhog Day".  Does anyone out there remember that movie?  It featured Andie McDowell and Bill Murray.  Bill Murray was a reporter who was covering the oh-so-rivoting story of the Groundhog in Puxatawney.  Will he see his shadow or won't he?  The task he was assigned to, resembled the rest of his life...MUNDANE and passionless.  He had no aim and no aspiration.  He relied on the path of least resistance to govern his life.  Until one day, mysteriously, he begins to relive this same mundane day over and over again.  In time, he comes to realize the OPPORTUNITY being presented to him!  Allow me to explain.

Each day of OUR lives is mundane and repetitious, isn't it?  We get up and work.  We feed our families and we go to sleep.  We play on the weekends.  Ultimately, what makes our lives extraordinary is the simple paradgim shift that we engage in when we tune-in deeply to experience each and every moment that is happening.  When we do this, we become ONE with our environment and with the people around us!  Isn't that exciting?  Does it excite you to think that you can have that kind of intimacy and connection with others?  Think about how well you know your home.  Can you find your way to the bathroom in the middle of the night with your eyes closed?  I bet you can...and do you know why?  Because you are intimately acquainted with your home.  You know where the stairs creak and where the wall ends...you even know if the door will be open or closed when you get there...You identify places by their fragrance or the way the air feels. You can tell what time of day it is by the position of the sun in your yard and whether the mail has arrived by the squeaky breaks of the mailtruck.  YOU KNOW THINGS INATELY and just lack intimacy with YOURSELF... and so you are not connected to the answers that you need. Being connected to your inner self is the first step to being connected to all people everywhere and to all things.  Love for self is the beginning of all knowledge.  It is the beginning of True Love.

Speaking of true love, in the movie GroundHog Day, it is Bill Murray's affections for a woman (a worthy woman I should say), that starts the ego into motion.  The Ego..HIS giant ego...has to be released before LOVE can grow.  None of his pickup lines work on this woman.  She is not interetsed in a man like him. He does not realize that the reason for this is that he is PASSIONLESS and directionless.  When he reaches a point where he abandons concern for winning her approval and is tired of the boredom of the repetition with the mundane day, he finally starts to insert some enthusiasm into what he is doing.  He starts slowly and before long, he takes all these mundane moments that once tired him and offended him, and he milks the experiences for all he can get out of them.  His gestures are grand.  His affection sincere.  He begins to care for others and he shows it!  When his love interest realizes what a GOOD man he actually is, she falls for him.  So he ends up with everything he wanted, right?  Not right...nope.  As we say in the Kabbalist creed...there is no happiness with bread of shame.  What is given must be received and what is taken must be returned.  He felt empty once again when he realized that she could not possibly love him without knowing the whole truth about him and about how he evolved and who he really was.  There was no intimacy there. 

Our Light is our Creator and the Light wants US to have it all.  But in order for us to have it all, we need to be without it all and strive to receive everything in balance.  In the movie, this principle exists as well.  Bill Murray tells the woman what is happening.  She believes him...although it is far-fetched.  Look at the evolution!  So let's ask ourselves...how did such a man as this...who started as a sleazy free-rider...end up a hero?  That's easy...He transformed.  He let himself be the Light and the Creator of his own story within the story.  He developed abilities and skills and he learned how to operate in his limited environment.  It's one of those, "love conquers all" endings.  You've gotta love Hollywood for that!  Sometimes, our lives don't play out the way they do in a movie.  We MUST surrender along the way.  Happiness exists in the journey.  THE JOURNEY is the DESTINATION!  So enjoy it...take in the scenary.  Smell the flowers...eat the treats...climb every mountain.  Life is short!  And life can be mundane, so empower yourself to embrace the little joys around you.  There are so many if you just look and see and learn to appreciate them!  The reason that this approach to life will change you, is that putting these concepts to work for you, DOES change you.  It changes your outlook and your mindset and your inner conversation...the one you have with yourself all day long.  When that changes, so does your energy and your outward appearance to others.  People will notice.  The people who's energy does not coincide with a higher vibration, will leave your life, while those who are on the same frequency will stick around.  Put yourself on the "level" you want to be on...forgetting where you think you actually are. Shine your own light into the dark places and expose the trouble-spots.  Embrace them.  They are what make your struggle and your success SO unique.  Choose to see life for it's possibilities...

Lilac

Reflections at Cocoa Beach

This magnificent world and it's beautiful places...

We are meant to enjoy them. 
Credit for many of these photos belongs to my Wonderful sister Jessica LaCasse.

Our day at Cocoa Beach was more than an average or typical excursion to the shore.  I would like to share it so that others can benefit from the way life happens to us and how we can aid it in delivering all the JOY and HAPPINESS we can manage to receive.  Having LOVE and LIGHT means GIVING love and light.  Sharing these moments with those around us is our calling...and unless we answer it we will never feel fulfilled.  No one can hide from life.  If you hide you suffer.  You must have faith and move your feet.

Like footsteps in the sand, the days of our lives are short. 

About 6 years ago, I decided to plan my first family vacation.  Our destination was Walt Disney World Florida.  I used the internet for booking the hotel, and I bought the tickets at the Disney Store.  I booked our airline tickets online also. I carefully considered where we would be and when we would do things.  I placed myself "mentally" in the moments and pictured us walking, eating, standing in lines, getting caught in a passing rain shower.  I asked myself, "realistically, how long would this activity take?" I created lists and itineraries.  I packed items we would need...I planned for a year.  It was the first time I had ever planned anything and implimented it.  To my great pleasure, everything manifested mainly as I planned it to.  The few things that did not go accordingly, involved airline travel and the unusual occurrances that sometimes cause delays when travelling by air.  I catalogued those few blips as learning experiences and would use them in future planning. 

So while I was living out this first-ever planned event that I created for my family, I had the oddest observation:  Creating something in your mind and then living it out, is a GREAT and POWERFUL thing.  I loved how it felt and I really wanted more of it.  After that, I began to plan regular vacations both large and small.  I liked planning so I planned parties and any other thing I could get involved in.  I love to plan.  I love creating that experience and then becoming a part of the vision and feeling it really happen.  First is the simulation (the mental) and then is the ride (the physical).

Just an aside here, but this technique of envisioning or imagining something and then actualizing it, can work for anything from changing your image, to transforming your career, to flying in a rocketship!  If you can dream it and see it in your mind's eye, you CAN achieve it and create it in your own life!  Sometimes we just get so caught up in seeing things "as they are", that we neglect to rely on our inner vision to create what we REALLY TRULY DEEPLY DESIRE. We can create what we really, truly, deeply desire by first holding it as our vision for ourselves.  If we want to be seen as an artist, first we MUST see ourselves as it, and then we can change the world's perception of it... and soon everyone will see it too.  I love to Plan and write.  I want people to see me as a Planner and as a Writer.  So I am becoming what I have already seen for myself.  Actualizing will generally require a leap of faith of some sort.  For me, I had to leap "out" of what I was "locked-in-as" in the eyes and minds of others.  This was necessary for me to release my "old dream" and embrace the new one.  Writing about these things that I am experiencing, while simultaneously experiencing them, and really allowing myself to be as present and in-the-moment at it as possible, is no small feat for me.  It takes mental and emotional strength to stay focused and be generous and loving to others and provide for the family while I do these things. 

When I returned from that trip to Florida, I decided with much gusto in my heart that I was going to LIVE in Florida.  I needed to live in Florida.  I wanted to live in Florida.  Moving there became my passion and my focus.  I studied the entire state and decided that I wanted to move to Brevard County Florida because in my opinion, this was a place I could really feel at home and connected to nature... and still be close to all the points of interest that mattered most to me which included Talent Agents, Disney and AAA headquarters (at the time I worked for them).  I studied the school districts carefully and determined that I wanted to live in a lovely town called Melbourne Florida.  My second choice:  Cocoa Beach.

Everything I knew about the area I had learned from the internet. The closest I had ever come to it in proximity was being in Orlando.  That is, until yesterday.  Yesterday I fulfilled a long-time dream to visit and explore the entire area and although one day is barely enough to scratch the surface, it was a day full of blessings because every twist and turn of fate delivered a special morsel for me.  When you study something, it becomes familiar, and you know things and feel things and believe things about it.  I happen to love reading maps and I study them for fun.  Working for AAA, I spent a lot of time studying maps for pleasure.  I became thoroughly knowledgeable of the entire region of Brevard County Florida.  I know it from tip to tip and isolated the spots I planned to visit one day.  I had no idea that a glitch in my sister's GPS programming would deliver it so beautifully for all of us!  Best of all, and equally as unexpected, was making the trip with my sister and all the kids! 

Instead of sending us up rt 95 from Jessica's home in Port St. Lucie, we were routed using A1A, the Scenic route...which instead brought us into Brevard at the South tip of Satellite Beach and through Sebastian Inlet and Satellite Beach and right through the heart of Melbourne as we made our way to Cocoa Beach!  I was so happy I nearly cried.  My gratitude was so overflowing.  I had the most wonderful day of virtually my whole life.  I explored... in awe of how the natural beauty of these places far exceeded that of my imagination.  Experiencing Melbourne...breathing in the smell of the air there and listening to the sounds there...was powerful for me.  It changed me.  I realized I DO have a powerful connection to this place and to the Atlantic Ocean.  I have always feared the ocean but yesterday I found myself wishing I knew how to surf and had a board because I would have just kept drifting further and further.  I enjoyed watching the surfers out there catching the waves and the boogie boarders (like us).  The sun was hot and the air was moist with humidity.  I felt completely serene.

My favorite event of the day, was driving through the neighborhoods and communities along the way to the beach.  there were endless miles of homes and shops and motels and hotels and condo communities and then parks and beaches and bridges.  People here are very friendly for the most part.  One of the stops we chose for the venture was Ron Jon's Surf Shop.  I had read about it and wanted to see it a year or so ago.  It was fun and colorful and sparks the imagination of Surf and Beach lovers...all Floridians love the Beach and Surf.  Why else would you be at Cocoa Beach anyway?

In conclusion, I will say that My weekend was powerful.  My relationships feel more energized now because I believe and accept that I have been given this gift...this amazing ability to create and to manifest. 

A quick manifestation story for you:  After feeling the heavy riptide and experiencing the HUGE waves, I wished we had boogie boards but we had only brought one...a very small one.  A minute or two after I said aloud: 

"When we go to Ron Jon's I am going to get a boogie board", this woman came over to Annika and Billy and said: "You can have my boogie board".  No idea why she gave it to us...she just did.  But something tells me...I have a feeling...it was all about intention.  Be careful what YOU wish for...

Lilac

Summer Road-Trippin - Cocoa Beach

Ah Cousins...My children are featured above with my nephew and neice.

On Saturday, July 21st I fulfilled a long-held desire to visit Cocoa Beach Florida.  The above photo was actually taken at Sebastian Beach Inlet as we traveled up rt A1A, otherwise known as "the scenic route".  The kids were great ...getting up early to start a wonderful day with us!

The Inlet where Sebastian Beach is, runs narrowly between two bodies of water and you can enjoy that view along with the view of some lovely homes and hotels along the way...

Check out Jessica's oversized melons...
2 for $8.00.

She is looking great huh?



Here we are finally arriving at our entrance to Cocoa Beach...the Lori Wilson Park.  The beach sand was HOT!  It was about 96* all day and perfect beach weather...

What a day!  The waves were powerful and the kids really enjoyed learning how to embrace that power.  They rode boogie boards and we picnicked at the beach.  We frolicked, mostly and then showered our sandy messes and headed to The Center of Cocoa Beach to the Pier and Ron Jon's Surf Shop!

What a colorful and FUN store! I loved it and so did my sister!  It was a terrific time...

I will let the photographs tell the story, so that is all for now...enjoy!

Lilac

Making fun in everyday things!

Even a trip to the mall, beach or park can be a great adventure and a time to build relationships and elevate ourselves emotionally.  Being elevated emotionally is a very important thing to be...and when we are in a state of happiness, we increase the universal energy too which means it affects all of mankind.  Our goal in life is to remember we are ALL connected to one another and responsible for one another.

Kids and adults having fun together...See my sister said the mall near her was no fun but we found plenty of fun!  First we hit the perfume counter but came away with only samples since MOMS NEVER BUY STUFF FOR THEMSELVES...we just think about buying stuff.  Next we went to Gamestop where a nice salesman named Allan helped me buy a Monster High DSI game for Annika....a reward for straight A's on her last report card.  Billy purchased 2 DSI games and we let the little kids spend a quarter buying gum...each.  They rode little coin-operated rides in the hallway while we made our purchases and then we went to FYE.  I screamed when I saw these guys in the entrance window!

We took all our hat pictures and Droid pictures in here as well as the Annoying Orange fun we had!

um...whose THE GUY holding the pear?  My hand looks like a MAN'S HAND...ewwwwwwwwww......gross........

Anyway, I need to work on having more feminine hands.

Great Summer memories for us all so far.  With my enormous EGO...left unchecked...I would NEVER have given myself the time and space to make this trip.  I would not be bonding with my niece and nephew and sister and brother-in-law.  My kids would not know their cousins or their aunt.  My daughter, who resists change, did NOT want to come to Florida.  She is learning that diversity makes us stronger, wiser, well-rounded.  She is experiencing what different cultures and climates feel like.  She is discovering things first-hand and not just from a book. 

As for me, I am making time to write and read and swim and even jog.  I make time to listen to music and have conversations and hangout doing nothing at all!

We went to Hecho a Mano (Made by hand) and we bought incense that smell like lilacs...here this wine bottle is an incense diffuser.  Can you see the smoke coming out from the holes at the bottom?  There is the Hecho a Mano bag they gave me when I purchased some earrings (yes..for ME).  They were $7.95...I splurged...LOL.

Pictures tell a story...the story of our lives.  Our lives are made in these SMALL MOMENTS...these twists and turns of fate.  We must grasp each one and squeeze what pleasure is in it...squeeze every bit out and explore it!  I hope you all will do this in your summer adventures.

Lilac~