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Our Animal Friends: Why We Love Them So

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“I believe that pets are God made visible…Sometimes, when God seems very far away, all I have to do is reach over and pet a tail or massage a furry head, and there He is. I have learned that each animal in his or her own way represents an aspect of God’s goodness.”
―Father Paul Keenan

Good morning and happy Friday! I have an extra special article for you this morning to help celebrate and wrap up our "Month of Love" on this final day of February. It's a very touching story about the love we have for our animal friends, but I must warn you that it may stir up some tears of joy ♥ 

This lovely story was shared with us by a dear friend of the late Father Paul Keenan, who was a columnist for SoulfulLiving.com, between the years 2002-2008. We have missed the wisdom he shared with our web magazine very much, but we are so delighted to be able to publish this story – one of his last works – an excerpt from his final book, "Why We Love Them So: Surviving the Loss of an Animal Friend."

KittenAs a cat lover from a very early age, I was very pleased recently to come across this photo of my eleven-year-old self with my precious childhood cat who lived to be 18 years old. I still think of her every day. Our pets touch a place in our hearts that are never, ever forgotten. And, I wholeheartedly agree with Father Paul's quote, above. It is at those times when I am sharing love with my furry friends that I experience some of my deepest feelings of connection with the Divine.

I hope you enjoy today's article and that it brings up the very special feelings of love you have shared with your precious fur babies, who may be living now, or who are, perhaps, a special memory of your past. Blessings to you and your furry ones ♥

Father Paul Keenan"Teddy's Legacy"

by Father Paul A. Keenan

When my 25-year-old cat, Teddy, passed away in April, it gave me the opportunity to reflect on the meaning of life, and how love can help people and animals to live well and even under difficult conditions. Teddy died in his sleep, and without pain, one thing for which I felt very grateful as I tried to come to terms with the loss of my friend who had come into my life 18 years before.

The fact that Teddy lived so long, and that I had the opportunity to accompany him through the various stages of his life, is a testimony to the power of God and to the power of love. Teddy was very sick his entire life. One of my mottos derived from my long tenure as a cat-parent is “there’s no such thing as a free cat.”

Some friends had given me Teddy (and Flicka, who passed away in 2000, also at the age of 25) to help them reduce their cat population from four to two. I had never had cats, and wanted to, and, it seemed, the price was right. Little did I know that, within a month, I’d be rushing Teddy off to the animal hospital for emergency surgery on his large intestine! The bill, of course, was staggering. No sooner had he recovered from that than another vet diagnosed him with a chronic immune system deficiency, which left him with bouts of flu-like illness at fairly regular intervals.

Father PaulOver the years, I learned how to care for Teddy at home, how to let him sleep when he needed to, how to feed him when he had lost interest in food. Throughout these episodes, I credit the power of prayer. Many times I would hold Teddy in my arms, all the while praying for him and letting him feel whatever I could mirror of the Father’s gentle love. Every time, it brought him around. Over time, his health improved, and the bouts of illness were much less frequent and easier to deal with. It was the power of prayer and the power of God’s love that made all the difference. In return, I was the recipient of a million lovely visits, when Teddy would snuggle up into my lap and fall asleep. I learned that love can travel in two directions at the same time.

Looking for life lessons in my long relationship with Teddy is a fairly easy task. Here are a few. Love can conquer the distance between the human world and the animal world. Love bridges gaps. When we feel limited in our ability to love, or feel separated or misunderstood or far away from loved ones, we can know that a simple sending forth of a loving thought or prayer can bridge even the widest of gaps. And at some level, whether we think so or not, an impulse of love comes back in return. Jesus taught us that — he called it the hundredfold.

Living a happy and meaningful life does not require always being in the best of health or other outer circumstances. Indeed, adverse circumstances can soften our hearts and bring into our lives those people who are really true friends. They often create our dearest and most cherished memories. And best of all, God’s healing and protecting love is always there, whether times are good or bad, whether we feel well or feel poorly, whether we are financially secure or shaky. If we refuse to let our adversities harden us, we can let them open us to new wisdom, new understanding and an abundance of love.

I am grateful to Teddy and to all of the animals I have known over the years who have helped me to understand the meaning of life and of God’s powerful love. They have been marvelous ambassadors and communicators of that which is most real and precious in life.

Copyright Father Paul A. Keenan. All Rights Reserved.

Visit Father Paul's Website to learn more about his book, "Why We Love Them So: Surviving the Loss of an Animal Friend," and the non-profit foundation, Perseus, which receives all proceeds from the book.

Read more about Teddy and Flicka in this article by Father Paul Keenan, "Of Friends and Tails, published at SoulfulLiving.com in 2002.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with much love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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Boundaries

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“People are starving for love, not knowing their heart is a magical kitchen. Open your heart. Open your magical kitchen and refuse to walk around the world begging for love. In your heart is all the love you need. Your heart can create any amount of love, not just for yourself, but for the whole world.”
don Miguel Ruiz

Good morning! I’m very pleased to be able to share today’s article with you. In this wonderful article, best-selling author don Miguel Ruiz shares his wisdom on love, relationships, and healthy boundaries. don Miguel Ruiz is the author of many bestselling books, including "The Four Agreements" and "The Mastery of Love."

Enjoy ♥

don Miguel Ruiz"Boundaries"

by don Miguel Ruiz

There are two kinds of boundaries we use when dealing with people–the boundaries we use when we don't have awareness, and the boundaries we use when we do have awareness. Usually we create boundaries in places where we can be hurt. We have emotional wounds in our minds, and if someone touches our wounds we have emotional pain. To feel safe in our interactions with people, we put boundaries around every emotional wound. These boundaries create a box that restricts us. When we heal the emotional mind, we no longer have those wounds, and the boundaries disappear. When they disappear, we create a new set of boundaries–this time with awareness.

The second set of boundaries we create is because of other people's wounds, so we don't allow other people to give us their emotional poison.

When we are young, we play with other children to have fun, not to insult them or to give them our poison. As adults, we also want to have relationships that we enjoy. We don't want poison like anger, jealousy, or envy. We don't want each other's garbage. When get together, it's because we want to share our love and our joy.

When we are no longer wounded, and we are in a relationship, we can put up boundaries to restrict another's poison. We call that respect.

We don't want to have relationships that are disrespectful to us. For example, if I am in a relationship with someone and that person tries to control me, I can tell them, "Okay this is the limit. Don't cross this limit. You can be with me or not, but if you stay with me don't try to control me. Give me my space, and I will give you your space. I deal with my garbage, you deal with your garbage. If you are cranky, I will give you space. You can be cranky, it's okay, there's nothing personal. I respect you, and I want respect also. If you don't respect me, I will not stay with you and it doesn't mean that I don't love you, no… I love you. But if I'm not being respected, I will leave and you can be with someone who is the way you want them to be.

We can create acceptable boundaries with people whose emotional poison we do not want to eat. When we respect ourselves, we will not allow disrespect from anybody else. This is not selfishness, it's self-love. The controlling aspect is selfishness–wanting a partner to stay with us even if we are in hell. If we go into relationships because, "Oh I need you so much," it's selfishness, not self-love.

We need to understand that self-love is completely different from selfishness. Self-love come from integrity. We recognize our integrity through our feelings. The feelings we have are real. If we don't feel good it's because something is not right. If we feel anger, we know that something is not right. If we feel envy or jealousy, something is not right. Jealousy is not bad, anger is not bad either. These emotions are telling us when something is not right.

Repressing emotions is not the answer…to change the cause of the emotions is the answer. If we feel anger or jealousy, we have to take one step back to see what is causing those emotions. If we change the cause, the affect also will change.

A love relationship should be based in respect. And that's why we put boundaries on our relationships. The boundary is not, "Don't touch me because I can get hurt." The boundary is a way to have someone show respect. We don't want their anger or their judgment…

Continue Reading "Boundaries"

Copyright don Miguel Ruiz. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on this article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with much love and romance!

Soulfully,
Valerie

 




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The Art of Romance

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“If I love myself, I love you. If I love you, I love myself.”
Rumi

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I have a lovely article for you today by husband and wife authors, Judith Sherven and James Sniechowski, called, “The Art of Romance: Love and Be Loved, Every Day of Your Life.” Judith and James are authors of many books, including “Be Loved For Who You Really Are” and “The New Intimacy.”

I enjoyed their article so much, I was inspired to create a Visual Inspiration for you today, too, with the wonderful quote by Rumi that they discuss in their article.

Rumi Love Quote

Enjoy ♥

Judith and Jim“The Art of Romance: Love and Be Loved, Every Day of Your Life”

by Judith Sherven & James Sniechowski

What one thing do you most want to know about love and relationship?

Recently we surveyed approximately 10,000 men and women asking that question. Ninety-five percent of those responding wanted to know how to keep romance alive throughout a relationship and marriage. No surprise. During our fifteen years working with singles and couples it’s been romance that has been the most desired as well as the most illusive of all relationship experiences. More than sex. More than good communication. More than family.

But what is romance?

That’s not a question with an easy answer. It’s the kind of thing that you know when you see it, and certainly yearn for it when it’s absent, but putting it into words leaves most people tongue-tied. So, before we can know how to keep it alive in our relationships, we need to identify just what it is we are after.

CONNECTEDNESS

When we experience romance we experience a quality of being transported, of being moved by an extraordinary moment of feeling, almost another dimension of feeling. And it is not by thought but by feeling that we can confidently say, “This is romance.” Through this special feeling we are extended beyond our everyday sense of self into an experience of unity and wholeness, a deep, spiritually rich connectedness with another person, and through that person to the wonder that is the whole of life. The separateness that is so much a part of most people’s daily life vanishes, even if only for a moment. And that is what is so extra-ordinary about romance. It may be fleeting but it leaves a mark on our senses and in our memory and it can stay with us for days if not years. No wonder romance is so desired.

Also, in the romantic moment we feel connected with another person without ever losing our sense of self. There is a profound oneness but not sameness, as the unique differences that two people bring to the moment are embraced. We remain ourselves, with an intense sense of our self, while in sweet and satisfying connection with another. And that allows us to feel truly loved. That allows the romance to be appreciated by each person in their own way.

As the poet Rumi says, “If I love myself, I love you. If I love you, I love myself.” By contrast, when we are steeped in a fantasy of romance, in the idea instead of the reality of romance, there is no connection and, as a result, no satisfaction. Why? Because we are fused with a ghost, a mere image that we are more loyal to than the flesh and blood reality. We are trapped in a dreamy castle of our own making, unconsciously insisting that our make-believe world will bring us what we want. Ironically, the person making-believe and the ghostly product of that make-believe are one and the same. The person is bound within their own spell, enclosed within their own expectations, ultimately unable to let anyone in.

Romance thrives only in that which is real and in the very distinct reality of two different people.

IMAGINATION

Imagination is at the heart of romance, but not when it serves the concoction of mere fantasy.

The best way to distinguish between these divergent paths is to identify fantasy as those envisionings which may even be pleasant and sometimes erotic, but that are never challenged. In fantasy everything goes the way we want it to. Even if we inject a little opposition to add drama, we still get everything we want, and more importantly, in just exactly the way we want.

On the other hand, imagination is that soul-filled experience wherein we apply the power of our creative imaging to manifest what we want in the world. With regard to romance, that involves another person who cannot help but impact our expectations differently than we anticipated. This is unavoidable because s/he is different, with a mind of their own, but more to the point, with an experience and expression of romance that will be uniquely their own…

Continue Reading “The Art of Romance”

Copyright Judith Sherven & James Sniechowski. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on this article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with much love and romance!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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Video: Wayne Dyer and Anita Moorjani Talk About Unconditional Love

Valerie Rickel
“Unconditional love is our birthright, not judgment or condemnation,
and there’s nothing we need to do to earn it.
This is simply who and what we are.”

Anita Moorjani

Good morning! I’m very pleased to share today’s Daily Soul Retreat with you. It is a YouTube video featuring Wayne Dyer interviewing Anita Moorjani about the unconditional love that she experienced during her near death experience. Anita’s story, as told in her book, “Dying To Be Me: My Journey from Cancer, to Near Death, to True Healing” is incredibly beautiful and moving. If you haven’t already read it, I strongly suggest you do!

Enjoy ♥


Leave a Comment

If you’re feeling inspired, I’d love to have you leave a comment below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with much unconditional love!

Soulfully,
Valerie Rickel, Founder
SoulfulLiving.com

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The Crafting of Relationship

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“Every moment of your life is infinitely creative and the universe is endlessly bountiful. Just put forth a clear enough request, and everything your heart desires must come to you.”
Shakti Gawain

Good morning and happy Friday! I hope you have a wonderful weekend planned!! I’m super excited because I will be spending the weekend working on a special new program here at SoulfulLiving.com that will be launching this spring! It’s something I’m VERY passionate about, so I can’t wait to get to work on it! 🙂 I’ll look forward to sharing more about it very soon! So stay tuned!

Today, I’m delighted to share an article with you by one of our long-time columnists at SoulfulLiving.com, Dana Reynolds.  In her article, “The Crafting of Relationship,” Dana offers us a creative way for couples to connect and create a powerful intention together through visual prayer! Enjoy ♥

Dana Reynolds“The Crafting of Relationship

by Dana Reynolds

Creative visualization is a powerful process. However, it takes more than visualizing to create and invite change in one’s life. Positive, constructive, action and an attitude of optimistic confident perseverance, combined with prayer and gratitude, are also necessary ingredients for drawing forth the desires and needs of the heart.

In a relationship, creating a unified vision of what is desired to benefit and enrich the life of the individual partners, and also the relationship itself, can be a very powerful process. This month I would like to share with you some suggestions for ways to co-create your “Relationship Visual Prayer” with your partner. I’d like to share a personal story with you to illustrate this concept.

When we turned the calendar to begin the New Year, my husband and I decided that we would take our New Years’ resolutions and create a collage to express what we were desiring to do and to manifest in the coming months. We spent an afternoon making our individual collages to serve as a visual reminder to our commitments to our personal goals. Later we shared them with one another, finally placing them on our desks to help keep us on track and focused.

In the week that followed, our personal visual prayers proved to be such very powerful icons that we decided the following weekend to work on a co-creative collage to create a visual prayer to our marriage/relationship. Here’s the process we created. Please feel free to elaborate these ideas to fit your particular relationship and creative inspiration.

We began by turning off the TV and getting quiet. We lit a candle and sat quietly for a while meditating on our life together. Then each of us took time to individually write a list of things we would like to change, enhance, or begin as a couple. Think of this as a wish list. For example, my husband wants us to take more weekend getaways to nearby places of interest. I would like for us to take a continuing education class together to learn more about a topic that is intriguing to both of us. Both of us wrote independently that we want to create opportunities to be with our children and granddaughter as often as possible. After our lists were complete we shared them, and as we talked, we came up with a few more ideas that we believed would improve and deepen our relationship

When we had discussed our lists, we gathered some magazines, scissors, and glue sticks and moved to the table in my workspace where we could settle in for a couple of hours to create our relationship visual prayer. Visual prayer is a visual representation of intention. This may take the form of a collage, an altar, a painting, sculpture, or arrangement of touchstones created with a specific intention for healing, manifestation, or blessing. Intention is at the heart of the creation of a visual prayer…

Continue Reading “The Crafting of Relationship”

Copyright Dana Reynolds. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on Dana’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with much love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




Soulful Match - Online Spiritual Dating Site

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Getting the Love You Want

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“The heart has its reasons which reason knows not.”
―Blaise Pascal

Good morning! I’m pleased to share one of our most popular articles at SoulfulLiving.com on the subject of “love and relationships” with you today, by the highly renowned, best-selling author of “Getting the Love You Want,” Harville Hendrix.

In his article, Harville offers us a very thorough and sometimes scientific analysis of romantic love. Fascinating! Enjoy ♥

Harville Hendrix“Getting the Love You Want

by Harville Hendrix

I usually ask couples how they met when they come to me for marital therapy. Gayle and Paul were already separated and he had filed for divorce after fifteen years of marriage when they came for their first session. They had met in Germany shortly after Gayle had graduated from college. She had just arrived, eager to begin her first teaching job on the military base. Although he was very handsome, she wasn’t particularly attracted to him when an acquaintance introduced them. He didn’t seem to be her type: he was studious, quiet and reflective; she was outgoing, humorous, and sociable.

She was surprised when he telephoned to invite her to an American movie with German subtitles. She recalled that his German was almost fluent, and she was eager to practice her new skills with him. Following the movie they went to a pub for coffee, and spoke mostly in German. During the next few months they spent more and more time together to study their shared passion. No one seemed surprised when they announced wedding plans a year later.

In contrast, Mark and Rene met in a college history class. He noticed her the minute she walked in the class; she had a beauty and an air of confidence that turned heads. As she tells the story now, he was too shy to ask her out, so she asked him for their first date. Theirs was an immediate attraction and they began dating exclusively. Against the advice of their friends and families, they married four months later and are still happily married after twenty-six years and four children.

The Mystery of Romantic Attraction

During recent years, scientists from various disciplines have studied attraction and romantic love, and valuable insights have come from each research area. Some biologists claim there is a certain “bio-logic” to courtship behavior that ensures survival of the species. According to this theory, men are drawn to classically beautiful and healthy women who have physical indicators that they are in the peak of childbearing years.

On the other hand, women select mates for different biological reasons. Women instinctively choose mates with “alpha” qualities, the ability to dominate other males and bring home the lion’s share of the kill. Thus, an aging corporate executive is as attractive to women as a young and handsome, but less successful, male.

Social psychologists explore the “exchange” theory of mate selection. The basic idea behind this theory is that we select mates who are more or less our equals. We seek potential partners on the basis of history, similar backgrounds, financial status, physical appeal, social rank and personality traits.

A third idea, the “persona” theory, maintains that the way a potential suitor enhances our self-esteem is an important factor in mate selection. Each of us has a mask, or persona, that is the face we show to other people. The persona theory suggests that we select a mate who will enhance our self-image. There seems to be some validity to this theory; we have all experienced some pride and perhaps some embarrassment because of the way we believe others perceive our mates.

Although these three theories help explain some aspects of romantic love, we are still left with our questions. What accounts for the intensity of romantic love? And why do so many couples have complementary traits?

The more deeply we look at the phenomenon of romantic attraction, the more incomplete these theories appear to be. For examples, what accounts for the emotional devastation that frequently accompanies the breakup of a relationship?

The theories of attraction we’ve looked at so far suggest that a more appropriate response to a failed romance would be to plunge immediately into another round of mate selection.

There is another puzzling aspect of romantic attraction: we seem to have much more discriminating tastes than any of these theories would indicate. To test this idea, reflect on your own dating history. In your lifetime you have met thousands of people; as a conservative estimate, let’s suppose that several hundred of them were physically attractive enough or successful enough to catch your eye. When we narrow this field by applying the social-exchange theory, we might come up with fifty or a hundred people out of this select group who would have a combined “point value” equal to or greater than yours. Yet most people have been deeply attracted to only a few individuals.

Furthermore, those few individuals that people are attracted to tend to resemble one another quite closely. Consider the personality traits of the people that you have seriously considered as mates. If you were to make a list of their predominant personality traits, you would discover a lot of similarities, including, surprisingly, their negative traits…

Continue Reading “Getting the Love You Want”

Copyright Harville Hendrix. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on Harville’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with much love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




Soulful Match - Online Spiritual Dating Site

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Heart of Love

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“A soulmate is someone to whom we feel profoundly connected, as though the communicating and communing that take place between us were not the product of intentional efforts, but rather a divine grace.”
—Thomas Moore

Meant to Be book Hello! I hope you are enjoying a wonderful President’s Day!

I’m very pleased to be able to share two more “LOVE” excerpts from the wonderful book, “Meant to Be” with you today. These beautiful short stories, “Heart of Love” and “True Love,” edited by Barry and Joyce Vissell, are sure to warm your heart and, if you love stories of love and romance as much as I do, they may even bring a few tears to your eyes! Enjoy ♥

Barry and Joyce Vissell“Heart of Love

Edited by Barry and Joyce Vissell

My brother, Danny, was born ten minutes before me. Inseparable from the beginning, we could only sleep if the other was close by. If one woke up, the other was soon to follow. Our two younger siblings were born within four years of our birth. Our parents were so busy with them that Danny and I took care of each other. If someone asked us what our names were, we would say in unison, “Danny”—or maybe the next day we would say, “Darlene.” As far as we were concerned, we were one and the same.

Throughout elementary school, junior and senior high, we ate every lunch together. The friends we had were always “our” friends. When we chose the same college, our father finally put his foot down and would not allow us to room together. We were assigned separate rooms with roommates of the same sex. I guess our parents hoped we would begin to operate more as individuals, but Danny and I continued to spend as much time together as possible. We began dating, but always as double dates. The truth is, we both knew we couldn’t spend the rest of our lives together, as we both wanted to have families of our own, but we were also so fulfilled in each other’s presence. Danny was my brother, my best friend, my main support, my confidant, and the funniest person I knew.

Although I liked doing everything with Danny, the pastime I enjoyed the most was painting. Danny was a sensitive, trained artist, who drew heavenly landscapes, with pictures of angels and little children. He could draw the most beautiful faces. His weakness, or so he said, was painting hands. In contrast, my strength was painting hands in their infinitely different positions. Often, Danny would ask me to paint hands on the angels or children in his paintings. When Danny and I were painting together, we felt exceptionally close to each other and also to our Creator.

One evening, we stayed very late finishing our work in the art classroom. Driving home, there was a special feeling between us. Suddenly, there was a car in our lane coming straight towards us. We were hit before I could even scream.

The driver of the other car was a teenager who had had too much to drink at a party. He was killed instantly. Danny was seriously hurt and rushed to the hospital. I was shaken, but not badly hurt. I rode in the ambulance with Danny. The doctors were grave and honest, Danny had sustained irreparable brain damage. There wasn’t anything that could be done. As his only relative present at the time, a surgeon approached me about the possibility of donating his heart for transplant. I got my parents on the phone and we all agreed to donate Danny’s heart so someone else might live. As Danny lay in a coma, his heart was removed and rushed to a waiting donor…

Continue Reading “Heart of Love” (Scroll down to the second article)

Copyright Barry and Joyce Vissell. All Rights Reserved.

“True Love

Edited by Barry and Joyce Vissell

When I was two years old, my mother put me in a day care center. She tells the story of how I was terrified to stay at this place until a two-year-old boy named Bobby joined the group. As long as Bobby was there, I was not afraid. Both of our mothers had to work full-time, so Bobby and I were there every day together. The staff reported to my mother that we were never far from each other’s side. When nap time came we would refuse to nap unless our blankets were side by side.

After three years in day care, it was time for public school kindergarten. The day care staff tried to prepare us for the fact that we wouldn’t be together again. That didn’t make sense to my five-year-old mind. I wanted to always be with Bobby.

Our mothers, acting independently of each other, enrolled us in the district’s elementary school. Imagine our surprise when I reluctantly went for my first day of kindergarten and there was Bobby! We were in the same class! Again, we played together every day.

Bobby was the bright spot in my life, since my home life was anything but happy and secure. My father would go out drinking and come home and hit my mother. My only joy and security was my time with Bobby at school.

In first grade, the children started to tease us for playing together so much. We didn’t care. Our favorite activity was swinging and telling each other jokes. We would laugh for a long time over our jokes.

Meanwhile, life at home was growing more and more unhappy. Lying in bed at night, I would hear my father yelling at my mother and hear my mother crying. I felt so sad I didn’t know what to do. To comfort myself, I thought of Bobby during those times and tried to remember the jokes he’d told me that day.

In second and third grade the teasing grew intense. The boys called Bobby a sissy for playing with me. Sometimes he’d leave me and go off to play with the boys. Those were very sad days. Usually, though, he’d continue to play with me.

One night, when I was eight years old, my father came home more drunk than ever and began hitting my mother very hard. I tried to stop him and he struck at me. I ran to my room crying. I wished I could sneak out of my house and be with Bobby. In the middle of the night my mother woke me saying, “Get up, pack some of your favorite things. We are leaving here for good. Now hurry!”

My mother’s voice was urgent and I obeyed her. We got in the car and drove west for seven days. All the time we were driving I cried. I wanted to be with Bobby, the one person that I felt secure and happy with…

Continue Reading “True Love”

Copyright Barry and Joyce Vissell. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on today’s articles! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with lots of love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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Lovers from Before

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“Lovers do not meet somewhere along the way.
They’re in each other’s hearts from the beginning.”
—Rumi

Meant to Be book Good morning! Friday is Valentine’s Day, and I’m super excited to be exploring the topic of “Love” this month!

Today and tomorrow, I’m very pleased to be able to share two “LOVE” excerpts from the wonderful book, “Meant to Be” with you. These beautiful stories, edited by Barry and Joyce Vissell, are sure to warm your heart and, if you love stories of love and romance as much as I do, they may even bring a few tears to your eyes! Enjoy ♥

Barry and Joyce Vissell“Lovers from Before

Edited by Barry and Joyce Vissell

The relationship between Barry and me seemed to begin before we met at age eighteen. It had been one of the main themes of my childhood play and fantasy: to reunite with my beloved. By the time we met, it felt like we had been in love our whole lives.

I remember as a child being sent to my room when I was crying or upset. Perhaps my parents were trying to understand my feelings, but in my young mind and heart I felt alone. I remember so clearly how, during one of those times, I heard an inner voice speak to me. I had never had this experience before and listened carefully to the message. It told me that when I was grown, I would meet a man who would understand my feelings, that I would recognize him as a tall, dark-haired doctor who would become my best friend. From early childhood, I trusted this message which came to me over and over again whenever I felt that no one understood me.

Barry and I found each other in a clumsy, youthful way. Our young hearts were hardly ready for the power of our connection, but our first kiss revealed a love that seemed to have existed for an eternity. Barry, my tall, skinny, awkward eighteen-year-old boyfriend, really seemed to be my beloved for all time past and all time to come. We had found each other and yet couldn’t fully comprehend the blessing. I feel so much gratitude to have found Barry so early in life and to still be living with him.

I remember, when I met Barry during my first year in college, the surge of energy that shot through me when he told me he was a pre-medical student. We eyed each other with mixed feelings. Neither one of us felt particularly attracted to the other’s appearance, yet we could not deny an energy that flowed between us.

Two days after we first met, we had our first date to see a movie. We hurried back to my college dorm to meet the curfew time. Mrs. Peabody, the elderly dorm mother, was waiting by the glass door.

“You have two minutes to get inside,” she snapped at me and continued to peer through the glass.

Oblivious of Mrs. Peabody’s stern observation, we kissed for the first time. In that moment, a door to another world flew open and it was as if we recognized one another. Standing in a daze, I heard Mrs. Peabody open the door. She pulled me inside and shut the door on Barry. That kiss changed my life forever…

Continue Reading “Lovers from Before”

Copyright Barry and Joyce Vissell. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on today’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with love!

Soulfully,
Valerie

 




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Marry Yourself First

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“To fall in love with yourself is the first secret to happiness.”
–Robert Morely

Good morning! Valentine’s Day is just two days away, and, as you know by now, I’m very excited to be exploring the topic of “Love” with you this month!

Today, I have a wonderful article for you by SoulfulLiving.com columnist, author and wedding officiant Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway, called “Marry Yourself First.”

I think you will enjoy this fun, transformative and empowering article very much. Let me be the first to wish you “Congratulations” on your marriage to yourself! =)

Rev. Laurie Sue“Marry Yourself First

by Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway

There is nothing in the world that beats the feeling of falling in love and being in love! Many of us fantasize of meeting our perfect match and being swept off our feet…yet more and more of us think of relationships as a life partnership that gives us sustenance and allow us to share our selves and our love in a deep and soulful way. We long for a strong and happy union and marriage, as well as a home life that offers security and is sturdy enough to be the foundation for all else we do in the world.

With so many people expressing so much desire for true love, why are so many still searching? Why do many people fear love may never come? The reasons are many, and as complex as each individual who desires true love. Yet in my 25 years of experience as a journalist specializing in relationships, and then a minister, wedding officiant and spiritual counselor, there are two things that crop up time and time again. One is that many people tend to think magically about love without doing the practical and emotional work to draw a relationship to them … and keep it healthy and alive. And second is that many of us skip important steps to creating the relationship of their dreams by forgetting the cardinal rule of love relationships — in order to experience genuine, mature love with another, we first must love ourselves.

I have said it before and I will stress it again: Your first stop on the road to romance is with You! Looking for love externally, and even finding someone who seems to adore you, can be a fleeting thing if you do not have a strong foundation of self-esteem and if you do not continually empower your own sense of self-worth. It is the esteem of one’s self and honoring of oneself that opens the door to another to do the same. I believe this is a spiritual law that guides the world of love relationships.

I’ve witnessed regularly what is possible for women, and men, when they do the work on themselves that allows them to connect with another human being on a deep and soulful level. I see it in women who have worked on tapping into The Goddess Within and who have begun to see themselves as divine and hence are treated that way. I have seen it in men who, once unsure of themselves and shy, realize that they are worthy of the love of a wonderful woman. I see it all the time in the couples that step up to the altar on their wedding day and truly connect to one another’s souls with the deepest kind of love and communion as they speak their wedding vows to one another.

How do they do it? There is no magic pill. It is a combination of taking the steps to changes one’s self image and negative beliefs about love and commitment, and the sheer power of the universe, which will always work with you when you are working on yourself! Sometimes, it helps to fake it until your make it. I don’t mean that you should be inauthentic, I just mean it cannot hurt to “act out” the new way of being you would like to create … and do what kids do when they are trying to learn how to master things in the world. They pretend and play act. Play acting self esteem and love is not a goofy thing, it can actually be an empowering way to retrain your subconscious mind to agree that, “YES, I AM worthy of love, happiness and a great relationship with self, as well as others.”

A Self Love Ceremony

There are many steps to the practical and emotional work that any one of us may be called to do in a lifetime and I advocate that you take all the steps you must to make yourself the best you can be, and to prepare for love in a sensible and soulful way. In addition to the more mundane and sometimes emotionally demanding tasks of getting ready for love, ritual helps to give us a head start on any life project. That’s why marriage ceremonies are so important. They create the sacred container for our goals and dreams; they give power to our aspirations for a loving lifetime relationship. They set the stage for how a couple in love will handle the challenges of relationships as they navigate the waters of life together. If you want to make a powerful statement about your readiness for love…marry yourself first...

Continue Reading “Marry Yourself First”

Copyright Laurie Sue Brockway. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on today’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with love!

Soulfully,
Valerie

 




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Soul Mates: Creating Loving and Successful Relationships

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“When deep down in the core of your being you believe
that your soulmate exists, there is no limit
to the ways he or she can enter your life.”

–Arielle Ford

Good morning! Valentine’s Day is just a few days away, and I’m very excited to be exploring the topic of “Love.”

I have a guest article for you today by author and workshop leader Evelyn K. Rice, called “Soul Mates:  Creating Loving and Successful Relationships.”

It’s filled with practical tips for creating successful “soul mate” relationships, and I know you are going to love it! Enjoy ♥

Evelyn K. Rice“Creating Loving and Successful Relationships

by Evelyn K. Rice

Five years ago, I was preparing to catch a flight out of Madison, Wisconsin, back to my home state of North Carolina. I sat down beside a white haired gentleman in the airport. He turned to me and said, “You’re going to India soon, aren’t you?”

I was floored. There was no way he could have known I was planning a trip to India. He then told me about other specific places I was planning to visit. Again, I was stunned. Then he said, “I’m supposed to share with you what it takes to create a Soul Mate relationship. You won’t understand why I’m sharing this information with you now, but one day you will.” This gentleman proceeded to reveal to me the three key principles needed to create the foundation for a Soul Mate Relationship. His parting words were: “What you do with this information is your choice”.

The next day, I ended a two year relationship that had been a constant struggle. I also made a commitment that in the future I would settle for nothing less than a Soul Mate relationship. I began my journey of learning: exploring my belief systems, owning my unhealthy patterns, and healing my wounds. Within eight months, my Soul Mate, Chris, came into my life.

I have never experienced such joy, openness and love within myself and with another person. I know now that only when you are committed to personal growth, healing and spiritual purpose, can you allow and draw toward you a partner willing to participate in creating a Soul Mate Relationship. This type of relationship requires being honest about the past and acknowledging areas needing growth. It requires understanding and managing the mind, body and emotions so they don’t manage you. It requires being very clear about your spiritual contribution to yourself and others.

The Three Keys to Soul Mate Relationships:

We are spiritual beings having a human experience. As a result, we have to balance our spiritual journey in a physical plane while learning to manage the physical components (mind, body, emotions, and laws of the physical plane) of this lifetime. Once we understand this, we increase our ability to manifest our highest relationship desires. Many people believe that if they find their Soul Mate, all their relationship challenges will instantly dissolve. When it comes to love, this myth has contributed to much frustration and loss of hope. The truth is, even if you have a potentially great relationship that you feel was destined to be, if you don’t understand the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual components driving and creating your relationship experiences, you are like an airplane without a navigator. You can unwittingly self-sabotage a potentially healthy and satisfying Soul Mate relationship.

There are three components that can help you begin the process of creating a Soul Mate Relationship.

The first is understanding Shared Reality. Shared Reality entails knowing and understanding a potential partner’s relationship goals and dreams, and identifying up-front if they are on track with where you are going in your life. Shared Reality also involves both potential partners being clear about what they want for their life as individuals, and knowing how that would be enhanced within a relationship.

When a person is looking for a relationship it’s easy to say, “Oh, I hope that person will want me,” rather than, “This is what I want for my life. Would this person be an excellent asset and companion to my achieving my purpose”? To begin creating the space for Shared Reality with a potential partner, you can ask yourself the question: “What is my individual purpose?” When you are really clear about what you want, it helps you move toward those desires. Ask yourself, “If I only had six months to live, what impact would I want my life to have made for myself and others?”

Identifying your specific purpose for this lifetime helps you identify what type of person would be an asset in achieving your mission…

Continue Reading “Soulmates: Creating Loving and Successful Relationships”

Copyright Evelyn K. Rice. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on today’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with lots of love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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Valentine’s Day: Presents or Presence?

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Love can only be found through the act of loving.”
Paulo Coelho

Good morning and happy Monday! I hope you enjoyed a terrific weekend. I’m super excited because it is Valentine’s Week! How about you?

Yes, I admit it. I love “Love.” My mother said it was the first word I spoke as a young child and that I wrote the word everywhere my little hands and pen could reach. Give me a good romance movie, and I become a tearful mess, no matter how many times I’ve seen the movie. My favorites? Moonstruck, Love Actually, The Notebook. My eyes are welling up, just thinking about them!

Even though I don’t, personally, have a Valentine in my life this year, I am still very excited about this special day of celebrating love. I think we can all get excited about it, whether we’re in a romantic love relationship or not. There are many important people in our lives, who we can show our love and appreciation to on Valentine’s Day and every day!

Today’s article, written by intimacy and couples expert Diana Daffner, is called, “Valentine’s Day: Presents or Presence?” and explores the deeper, more meaningful gifts (than are traditionally given) that we can give to our loved ones on this special day of love or any day of the year. I think you will enjoy Diana’s article very much ♥

Diana Daffer“Valentine’s Day: Presents or Presence?

by Diana Daffner

It’s that time of year, when romance reigns supreme. Candlelit restaurant dinners, candy, cards, gifts, flowers. Endless expressions of love.

I’m all in favor of celebrating love, shouting aloud our passion and devotion to one another. I love romantic dinners, cards, flowers, presents. (Pass on the candy, please!) However, what I most treasure as a gift, not just on Valentine’s Day, but every day, is the gift of my beloved’s presence.

What does that word, presence, mean? At one level it simply means physical nearness. Sitting together watching TV or at a theater, walking along a beach, feeling the closeness of my beloved’s body and knowing that we are a unit, that we belong together. The tenderness of loving comfort that such nearness brings is often envied by those who dance alone. Yet for those who do have a partner, sometimes this endearing level of comfort allows us to mask and ignore an underlying, gnawing sense of separateness, of not really being known or touched at all. We find ourselves sacrificing ecstasy for contentment, relinquishing dreams of rapture for the comfortable stability of familiarity.

There are other levels of presence that can provide even greater joy, deeper intimacy and more nourishing spiritual bonding. Consciously or unconsciously, all humans crave this deeper level of presence. We yearn to be truly seen and heard. A caring and compassionate therapist or counselor often fulfills this need for many of us. Someone who listens to our emotional self-discovery, who focuses exclusively on us. When we stand before others in an AA meeting, the undeviating attention allows us to speak about ourselves honestly and from the depth of our being.

This power of being in the present moment is experienced in spiritual and wisdom circles. Drawing on ancient custom, we each speak in turn, passing a ‘talking stick’ (maybe better called a ‘listening stick’) that ensures that others in the circle are indeed listening to our words, our personal expressions of self. When we trust that we are being listened to, we can learn to drop our public face and reveal our inner soul.

Even alone, we can experience the power of revealing ourselves by imagining or sensing our spiritual guide, guardian angel or our own higher self. We can speak to them, and their willing presence, attentive and unwavering, will allow us to say what needs to be said. As the old cliché reminds us, when we share our pain with another, it lessens, and when we share our joy, it doubles.

And going deeper still, we can move beyond a presence that permits emotional disclosure to a level of exquisite presence that simply is. A level of presence that invites us to share our essence with another, to settle softly into our own beingness. The quiet peacefulness of a meditation group, a yoga or tai chi class, is due to this shared presence, as we each rest in our own sense of Self. No longer separated by our stories, we are joined by our mutual participation in the Oneness of an all-pervasive, ever-present intelligent energy.

What does all this have to do with Valentine’s Day? In a love relationship, we have at our side someone who loves us. Not a therapist, not a casual classmate or fellow workshop participant. A flesh and blood human being who has chosen, and is willing, to the best of their ability, to be close to us, to be intimate. While as individuals, we may walk, talk and experience life differently from one another, when we come into open presence with each other, all those differences slide away. Only the Oneness remains. It is here, in relationship, that we must learn to walk this path, to give presence instead of just presents…

Continue Reading “Valentine’s Day: Presence or Presence?”

Copyright Diana Daffner. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on today’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with presence and love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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Clear Your Love Clutter

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“If you can’t get rid of the skeleton in your closet,
you’d best teach it to dance.”
George Bernard Shaw

Good morning! I have a great article for you today about “clearing your love clutter” by SoulfulLiving.com Columnist Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway.

Rev. Laurie Sue shows us how to prepare ourselves for love by gently releasing our past — anything that might stand in the way of becoming all we can be in a relationship. “The first step to finding the right partner is becoming the right partner,” she says. Practical and thorough, I think you will enjoy her article ♥

Rev. Laurie Sue“How to Clear Your Love Clutter

by Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway

Want to find new romance … a soul mate … the love of your life? The first step to finding the right partner is becoming the right partner, and the first step to transforming ourselves and getting ready for love is by getting rid of anything – and sometimes, anyone – who stands in your way of becoming all you can be in a relationship.

In opening to soulful love, we are required to take personal responsibility for putting our lives in order for a relationship. It requires preparing body, mind and being, as well as literally creating the space for love to enter. You have to be committed to bringing order into your life on ALL LEVELS — physical, psychic, emotional, financial, and spiritual.

So get ready to roll up your sleeves and get to work. Your mission is to ditch the things that will get in your way of being able to be fully present with a new beloved.

To accomplish this, you must go down to the basement of old relationship baggage and then poke around the attic of broken-heartedness of the past. You have to look at the places – physical, emotional, spiritual – that still keep you tethered to the past.

Why cleaning love clutter is important

It may seem contrary to clean up love clutter, yet also embrace the concept that soul mate love has its own schedule and the journey is filled with great mysteries and questions – that it can be necessarily rushed. But imbedded in this journey must be the trust that somehow, when the time is right and you are ready, you will know that true love will appear. It’s just that if you have too much love junk from the past in your life, you may not be able to recognize true love when it comes to your door.

For example, if you house is filled with mementos and reminders of lovers past and/or love gone awry, it is very difficult to focus on a fresh start in a positive relationship with someone new. You may not even be aware of the subtle influence it exerts in your love life if you live with constant reminders of love’s disappointments, pains, or even overt reminders of love’s better days…

Continue Reading “How to Clear Your Love Clutter”

Copyright Laurie Sue Brockway. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on today’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a day filled with love!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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Healing Through Your Relationships

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“So it’s not gonna be easy. It’s gonna be really hard. We’re gonna have to work at this every day, but I want to do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever, you and me, every day…”
— Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook)

Good morning! I have a wonderful article on love and relationships for you today by SoulfulLiving.com columnist, spiritual counselor and author Laura Grace. Laura’s books include: “Gifts of the Soul” and “The Intimate Soul.”

In her article, “Healing Through Your Relationships,” Laura asks us to be willing to show up and be fully present in our relationships and to love deeply with all our heart. Enjoy ♥

Laura V. Hyde“Healing Through Your Relationships”

by Laura V. Grace

We are offered no greater opening to know the truth of who we truly are than in relationship. Relationships are such powerful catalysts because they mirror the aspects we most need revealed for our soul-growth. What we see and react to in another, we possess within ourselves. Thus both the fear and love we see on another’s face is the reflection of both our own humanness and divinity. Even during the most challenging times our soul is able to thrive since our encounters with others are our greatest opportunities for growth.

Our relationships flourish when we are willing to show up and be fully present. Too often, we allow ourselves to divert onto other things when we’re around the people we love the most. How often, after many years of being together, do people simply grow apart? While counseling couples, I’ve witnessed a common theme where the woman has attended to the home and children and the man has focused on earning a living, only to discover that when retirement rolls around, they no longer know each other!

When our relationships become stale and predictable, it’s either because we are not honoring them for the temples of healing that they are, or we’re not delving inward toward our own soul where our passion runs deep. This reminds me of a conversation I had with a woman who was complaining that her life was lacking in pizzazz. “The 1960’s was a period with a lot more excitement. The peace marches were really something. Today’s demonstrations are boring in comparison,” she stated.

Yes, the 60’s were a time of much upheaval. There was a lot of trail blazing occurring which was necessary to get us where we are today. Revolutionary thinking was key during that time, but evolutionary thinking is required today. And that’s a good thing. While there was much being done on the outer planes during the 60’s, there is much being created on the inner planes today. We now understand the staggering power of our thoughts, which for many, has led to an entirely new way of being, and living.

So, perhaps this person was feeling bored within her relationships including the relationship with herself. Not because there’s less excitement in the air, but simply because she was playing it safe and not stretching beyond her comfort zones.

Abandonment, rejection, withdrawal—these kinds of fears prevents us from extending and receiving love. And in truth, they only cause us to reject and abandon ourselves. The only real pain we will ever feel stems from withholding our love. In reality, all love already resides within us. And since we have an infinite wellspring from which to give, how could we ever truly be without love? This reminds me of a beautiful quote I once read from an anonymous source that affirmed, “You can never lose by loving; you can only lose by holding back.”

Continue Reading “Healing Through Your Relationships”

Copyright Laura Grace. All Rights Reserved.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments on Laura’s article! Please scroll down and leave your comments below.

And, if you haven’t already done so, be sure to pick up your special package of inspirational goodness exclusively for our Daily Soul Retreat Newsletter Subscribers — a “Soul Retreat Gift Pack” filled with over $300 worth of Ecourses, Ebooks, Audio Workshops and Meditations, donated by our awesome SoulfulLiving.com authors. If you aren’t already subscribed, click here for all the details. If you are already subscribed, watch your Daily Soul Retreats for all the details.

Wishing you a lovely day!

Soulfully,
Valerie




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