Snowdrop essence and Intention

 

Snowdrop Essence - set your intention!

Before enlightenment, 

Chop wood, carry water

After enlightenment

Chop wood, carry water 

Attention to the small

As we chart our course.

Spring is an excellent time to refresh and renew, body, mind, spirit and emotions. Many traditions invite spring fasts or cleanses, as a reset from less activity and heavier foods of winter.

As spring flowers begin to emerge, I eagerly awaited my Snowdrops' bloom! During the Angel Cafe in November, Sarah Estelle mentioned Snowdrop as part of a favorite trio for aligning with our divine feminine energy. It is also associated with poultry, innocence and simplicity. 

Snowdrop welcomes energy into our crown and into the heart, and provides impetus to "set intention and rewrite our future." I was delighted to find the clumps under one of my apple trees in bloom, and make Snowdrop essence on the weekend! 

I put some of the left over essence water into a couple of mister bottles, following Sarah Estelle's suggestion of using it this way each morning to help set intention. Like her mama, mine loved blooming spring bulbs.

When I lived in the Breitenbush community, I often gave myself the gift of a day off after  a workshop. It was so nourishing to have time for integration, introspection, logging insights, practicing new techniques, receiving bodywork, and soaking in the hot mineral water!  I was grateful for the organic vegetarian, meals and herbal tea that were our daily fare & often made myself a flower essence bouquet to support my process and integration. 

Snowdrop would be a wonderful addition to a workshop bouquet. Another of our spring beauties, Camas, helps integrate intuitive and logical processes, and harmonize methods of learning. Tea Camellia, the "Ancient One, rooted in timeless beginnings, brings stillness, connection to one's true self, and provides a mirror for self reflection."

At times, we may experience a mountaintop breakthrough, either in life, or during a workshop. We see new possibilities shining... It's so beautiful to have that reference point of being so completely present - then, how do we integrate and implement shifts?

It can help to remember our tools for grounding, centering, and to continue our favorite daily practices wherever we are! Selenite is a great travelling companion - sweep your aura, do self Reiki, smudge the room, ground yourself. Maybe have a favorite herbal tea and breathe the stream ...

Some of my favorites are Qigong, flower essences, doing a creative practice, music, prioritizing local organic fare - so fortunate to have a year round farmers market! And Dark chocolate is my favorite treat!)

Sending blessings of spring, and Snowdrop flower essence, to Rewrite your future!   

Clearing the Decks

 We've all got them, areas or a whole house full of too. much. stuff.  

Do you get bogged down just thinking about it? I do a good job for awhile, then get busy and things multiply!! 

CLEARING CLUTTER for POSITIVE CHANGE
Clutter accumulates when energy stagnates, and likewise, energy stagnates when clutter accumulates. It can be a vicious cycle, clutter is both a symptom and cause of heavy or stagnant chi, of struck life force.  And fortunately, movement of either prompts flow in both!

When we clear physical, emotional and mental clutter and stagnant energy in our environment, we free and release the stuck energy that keeps us in a holding pattern of exhaustion, overwhelm, and/ or procrastination. 
Clearing clutter also enhances sleep, clarity of thought, vitality, sparks joy, enhances prosperity, and healthy weight! An added bonus, clear space requires less time spent cleaning, and easier upkeep.

Take a moment, and think how you feel in your messiest space. Notice your posture, and sensations in your body. Take a breath and shake that out!
Now, picture walking into a beautiful, serene space, perhaps in a spa or retreat center. Notice how your body reacts, is your breath fuller? Do you feel like you can take up more space? Stand taller? 

When you're ready to dig in, here are some tips from my inspirational friend Gwynne Warner, Feng Shui consultant, and  from a few others on clearing clutter and setting a more harmonious environment.  

 Basic guidelines:

• Pick a day when the wind is not to strong, nor eerily still. When the wind is strong, wealth can't accumulate - this can be a good time to get rid of dated documents, files, or office paper!
• Choose a time you feel the most energized, daylight and morning are great
• Wear bright colors, orange, yellow, red are yang and give energy. (Blue, grey and pastels are more yin, and better for relaxing) 
• Take breaks for crying, dancing, breathing, drinking water, eating a good snack. After 25 minutes, feel free to stop for the day, or take a 10 minute break, and do some more! 

Before you begin:

• Make some notes on what you'd like to accomplish.
• Keep a clipboard handy for jotting down action steps. 
• Fill a Waterbottle or big glass of water with a sprig of mint, lemon and cucumber, and remember to drink some periodically. 

• Start to sift the stagnant energy of the area by increasing yang (active) energy
• Turn on all the lights (bring in more light if it's a dark area!) 
• Open windows and doors in the space - even just a crack for at least 10 minutes. 
• Burn incense: sandalwood, juniper, nag champa, or spritz with essential oil in water: orange, Neroli, bergamot
• Clap or ring bells to "wake up" the space
• Play uplifting, joyful music, or a video on cleaning that space, or, ...

While You Clear Clutter

• Clear in blocks of 15-45 minutes - set a timer, and take breaks. 
• My favorite patterns are 20/10 (especially good if you have chronic health challenges or are depressed) and 45/15. 
• And remind yourself - even 5-10 minutes is better than Ø ! 

Gather 4 bags, bins or boxes, and Mark:

• Obvious Trash (things someone else would toss)
• Recycling (ditto - I have a tall white trash basket for recycling that I bring into the room I'm working on)
• Donate / gift/ sell
• Things to take to another area

Pick up one thing at a time and ask yourself

• Does it LIFT MY ENERGY when I think about it/ look at it?
• Do I absolutely LOVE it?
• Do I actually USE it? (Or have another like it that I like better?)
• Do I NEED it?
• Where would I look for it?

If your answer to any of thefirst 4 is, "No!" -  count it as clutter, and let it go!" Place it in the appropriate box.  Pick up the next item and ask the same question.

After You've Finished Clearing Clutter for the Day

• Allow yourself 10- 15 minutes to:
• Empty the trash immediately, outside your home
• Take recycling to your bins 
• Take things in the transit box back where they belong. If that area is also cluttered, put it close, books by the book shelf, etc.
• Put items to donate in your vehicle (or in separate area, and make a note of when you plan to deal with them)

Tidy time - I like to allow another 10-15 minutes for this step!

• Sweep or vacuum
• Spray with aromatherapy/burn incense
• Look at the area you've just cleared, and congratulate yourself! 
• Woo hoo, we did it! Even if you only spent 10 or 20 minutes, it is that much more than nothing! 

After You've Cleared Clutter from the Entire Room

• Clean the room - I personally love Melissa Maker's "Clean My Space" videos and blog! Her 1, 2, 3 room sweep is great (and works great for minor clutter!) 
• Use simple cleaning products (Melissa has tutorials on making your own!) Scent with lemon grass, pine, basil, orange or rosemary if you wish.
• Bring in or buy fresh flowers
• Sit in your favorite chair and admire the room, you did a great job!! 
• Reward yourself! (Hint, think experience rather than retail therapy!) 

Staying Clutter Clear
Are you great at doing "Bumble-Bee Cleaning" (BBC) just before someone comes over? I am! Rachel Hoffman of UFYH reminds us that we are important, and suggests we clean for ourselves, not just for company! "Company ready is good, but you ready is better!"

• After an area or room has been Cleared of Clutter, it's easier to keep it that way if you do a little every day! Set the timer for 20 minutes, and do a basic reset. 
• Notice where Things tend to accumulate, and streamline ways you deal with those. 
• UFYH offers great tips for getting on top of the clutter. (And there's a Facebook group, Team UFYH (official) which offers awesome, shame free group support.)
• Melissa Maker's video on maintenance has great tips on "keeping it up." She has videos for each room, I like to put one on while I'm cleaning! She also has one on getting motivated! 
• To assist yourself in being neater, hang a 50mm faceted leaded crystal sphere (Gwynne carries these in her online boutique)
• Take advantage of charity yard sales, and donate items (they'll often pick up)
• Houston Clutter Fairy, Gayle Goddard has a MeetUp and posts videos with monthly tips on tackling different areas. I was intrigued with her statistics on Boomers, and the number of us drowning on clutter! While we use technology, we often don't quote trust it, hence keeping paper etc we don't really need to!
• Compile list of daily, weekly and monthly basics in a way that works for you. 
• If you share a space, engage others in cleaning if you can, ... Clean anyway, if you can't! 
• If it starts to pile up again, pick a messy area and stare at it. Do nothing. Breathe. Stare at it. ...ideas may begin to percolate... Breathe. Stare at it, breathe. When you can hardly stand it, take another breath. Then dive in, using these tools!

Happy clearing! 

Cleansing

My daughter, in her explorations on becoming gluten free, brought home some books on Stanley Burroughs' Master Cleanse, which uses lemonaede made from freshly squeezed OG lemon juice, maple syrup & cayanne pepper in pure water several times daily, for 10 or more days.
I've enjoyed reading 'the complete Master Cleanse,' & am looking at how it would 'fit' in my life. (as a massage therapist, I spend 1/2 - 1 1/2 hours with each client - too much of a 'purge' wouldn't be good!)

Meanwhile, I got a few OG lemons & the suggested Grade B (more minerals, & actually the 'best' - & a bit cheaper!) yesterday, & drank a glass of the juice this AM. My sister-in law has suffered from gal stones, & begins her day with a glass of cayanne infused lemonade, so this felt like a good way to get some of the benefits!

Since beginning to use coconut oil almost exclusively, I've been steadily 'trimming' & my energy has consistently been good. I enjoyed seeing that Tom Woloshyn, the author of 'The Complete Master Cleanse,' suggests using coconut oil when you come off the lemonade cleanse.

I like to use Lalitha's chaparral cleanse several times a year, brewing a cup of tea each evening & drinking the following AM, & also have used Cleanse Powder, taking a spoonful & 'chasing' with water, & clear tea from the lovely Lincon City Herb Store. (from a 'rave' by a fellow shopper: "Mark will ship to all parts of the country. He is in my opinion, one of the BEST and most compassionate herbalists I have the pleasure to know. Here is the address and phone if you prefer to order through him. They have a FANTASTIC Chinese Herbal section, Bulk herbs and all sorts of vits. and minerals. Also books.
THE HERB STORE
3417 N.W. Hwy. 101
Lincoln City, Oregon 97367
PH: (541)994-9733 )

Meanwhile, my daughter's been making great gluten free bread, & chicken noodle soup (using rice noodles), & a lovely chicken curry, for which I made fresh coconut milk! MMMmmm . . .

Natural beauty

I've always enjoyed playing with natural beauty 'fixings' - beginning with things like peppermint facial steams & such when I was in HS.

Recently found the ecoetsy blog, & this recipe for a natural deodorant! I love the Avalon Organics roll on - which I often find 'way cheap' at our local Grocery Outlet, but had to try mixing some up!!

Here's what I used:
3 T coconut flour (called for cornstarch)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 C shea butter
1/4 C coconut oil
5-10 drops neem oil (this is sticky, so had to gestimate!)
10 drops Lavender essential oil
10 drops Lemon essential oil
5 drops Clary Sage e. oil
heat oils (I put the container above the light on the hood above my stove for ~ 15 minutes) & combine. Add a bit more soda or starch if it needs it.
Viola!
It smells yummy, a bit gritty with the flour/soda, & will give a report after I've used it for a few days!

For a face scrub, I grind some rolled oats in my trusty electric 'coffee' mill, with dried lavender, rose & calendula petals. I may add a bit of cornmeal & clay for more 'grit.' I keep it in a small jar in the bathroom, & use rather than soap for washing my face.

I tend to use locally made glycerine based soaps, BioKleen (made in nearby Vancouver Wa) for my laundry, with a tbsp of baking soda sprinkled on the clothes. (need to look for washing soda)

I've been using coconut oil for my main 'lotion' these days, but inspired by the shea/coconut oil blend, I just combined a Tbsp of coconut oil, one of shea butter, & a tsp of coco-butter, melting them above the light. Nice & smoothe!

I've made the switch to mineral based cosmetics - ordering them online, or occasionally picking some up at a shop in town. If you order from CMH, be sure to check for the monthly special! I especially enjoy her 'chameleon sparkle,' the shimmer veil, & the sampler sets. A small 'sample' size is < $2, so it's easy to try these.

Well, off to the 'salt mines,' & then this afternoon I head downtown to play the harp for our 'Who's on Third' Festival! If you're in the area, stop by :)

Detox

Music to my soul, this week of honoring the body, & listening.

Being a Virgo, & a body worker, I am always encouraging folks to pay more attention to what they put in their bodies, how they move, & encourage them to drink more water!
Yesterday my dau. (who lives next door - tho she's thinking of moving across town - yikes!! Getting married in Jan, & they do 'need' more room - but it's SO handy right now!!) phoned & invited me to bring my matt over & join her in yoga - a perfect beginning!
In the evening, her girls stayed the night with me, & I did some Reiki on the little (4) one when she went thru her restless phase, then on myself as I (quietly) sang the Cherokee chants for the Chakras (for us all) . . . got out my drum this AM & played & sang a bit as we were waking up. Well - I woke up early, so finally came downstairs & wrote a bit!

Practices for today - I have an agave cloth, so used that for the 'dry brush' - do that occ, but usually forget to do it 'dry.'
I wash my face with oatmeal, with calendula, rose & lavender flowers - I grind them in my little seed grinder (electric 'coffee' grinder) & keep a jar in the bathroom. I always lite candles for baths/showers, & have a jar of Epsom salts with a bit of essential oils mixed in - clary sage & rose geranium. So shower & bit of a soak, with wash cloth to 'steam' my face. (Rosemary Gladstar's Family Herbal is loaded with great ideas - for cleanses, for body care products)

A favorite cleanse I use periodically is Chaparral Cleanse, as taught by Lalitha Thomas in her '10 Essential Herbs.' I highly recommend this little tome! She is a practical herbalist - what are things that are easy to use & effective?
I'll do at least a 6 day cycle, she recommends up to 21 days for full effectiveness. You use 1 teaspoon of leaves, & re steep for a total of 3 days, then repeat the cycle; 7 teaspoons of tea in all.

Chaparral Cleanse:
1 tsp of chaparral leaves
Cup of very hot - but NOT boiling - water
Steep overnight, strain & drink first thing in the AM

Using the same leaves, repeat, drinking a cup the 2nd & 3rd days, then discard leaves, & start with new leaves that evening. (1 tsp for 3 days, & always very hot water, not boiling!! I like to use a small french press, covered with a china lid while steeping, then I simply press the leaves before drinking.)

-- Since I didn't read about the suggested cleanse 'till today, I steeped the tea while taking the shower, using 1/2 tsp chaparral, 1/2 tsp olive leaves (also great for cleansing & detox!)
Whole chaparral leaves can be hard to find, as the FDA is uncomfortable with its use (she writes about that in her chapter) It's similar to the proscription on sassafras - if used as country folk do, occasionally for a detox, it promotes healthy livers. In experiments with lab rats being given huge doses over extended periods of time, they had liver problems. Go figure :) I get mine from Mountain Rose Herbs, here in Oregon. They focus on sustainable farming practices, wildcrafted & OG herbs - & some great 'clean' body care products!!

I will work on drinking more water this week - as others have said, city water sucks!! Darn it, they take perfectly good water & treat it! (at the resort, we filtered the Clarine back out of any drinking water.)

OK, so it's 'good' to make sure it's pure - but our city ads fluorine as well, which can be linked to bone loss, & various health problems. We're in a goiter belt, our soil lacks Iodine, chloride & fluoride displace iodide. . . . I use quite a bit of kelp, & have some iodine caps at my office, for days I go swimming (water aerobics)
I may also use some food grade betonite in water (clay - one of my fav. healing substances) this week.

My usual breakfast is my home made granola (some clients spoiled me last Christmas with a care package with some, & I've been making my own since! I use olive oil & OG agave nectar to sweeten, maybe 2 Tbsp for several cups) with plain yogurt, fruit in season (or frozen) & my 'yummy sprinkles.'

Yummy Sprinkles
2 Tbsp Milk thistle seeds
2 Tbsp flax seed (I bake the granola for ~ 15 min @ 20, & have some flax seed in another pan @ same time)
2 Tbsp sesame seeds WITH hulls (for calcium)
Grind in seed grinder (may need to do in a couple of batches) & store in the freezer (I sometimes add bee pollen, or a tsp of fennel seeds)

Lets see; I try to eat simply, lots of veggies, Rice & Lentils is our family standard (OG, natch) & I love the different shades of deeper brown, combined with the short grain brown.

Body image - I tend to 'normal weight,' tho since turning ~ 55, lol . . .
I've always had bigger hips & thighs - 'till I stopped drinking milk! I grew up with pasture fed cows, &no hormones that I know of, & raw milk. Found out this summer that drinking pasteurized milk, since that process destroys the lactase, can cause lactose intolerance. My former hubby had also grown up on raw milk, & became lactose intolerant after we divorced, as we'd gone to certified dairies to get raw milk.
I continued using local yogurt, but pretty much stopped drinking milk. I've never drunk coffee, so mostly have water or herb teas - often from my garden! & I have a couple of tea camellia plants (did you know 'black' & 'green' teas come from Camellias? Any place the ornamentals grow, so will the 'tea' - Camellia sinensis)
I eat some meat, try to keep that to wild (my son hunts) or OG. Mostly drink herb teas & water . . . . occ some wine, often a bit of port or sweet wine . . .

One thing I've noticed doing the SC process - my desire for sweets has dropped off - on Sat I cut cake at an event, & didn't even WANT a piece, . . . Chocolate - I keep some dark chocolate on hand, & find even that easier not to have.

The La Leche League (breast feeding support group) motto for nutrition was "Eat a wide variety of food, in as close to its natural state as possible." Local, OG (usually have at least a small garden!), from the rainbow, . . . & I live in a community that is getting more interested in supporting local small agriculture - weekly farmers market May - Oct, several Community Supported Ag. farms, . . . good Natural Foods store (I was on the old food-co-op board, & we sold the bus to them in the early 90s)

In the late 70s, before studying massage, I began taking Ballet, & while I strongly disliked PE (usually ball sports, with a jock teacher) I adore dance, in its many forms!! I began with Tai Chi with my massage practice, & enjoy belly dance, ecstatic dance, Nia, ballroom, round dance, jazzercize, . . . & deep water aerobics. In the winter it's harder to get myself up for that class - but I intend to go Tue :) Bike to work (good weather/ warm enough) & enjoy walking to downtown ~ 8 blocks) . . .

Love this week - love it, love it!!