by bringmebliss | May 8, 2016 | Inspiration
Happy Mother's Day!
It never hurts to have a few nudges if inspiration or new ideas to help jump-start your special day. If you aren't a mother or don't have a mother, do not lose heart. Be a mother to someone – your dog, your neighbor's dog, someone in a nursing home, yourself! Bring someone bliss…nurture today and you will find peace in your heart. Here are 10 Self-Care Tips for Moms on Mother's Day!
1) Upon waking up…take several deep breaths and say, "thank you, thank you, thank you." A few words of gratitude for having the amazing privilege of being a mom will go a loooong way!
2) Grab your favorite beverage – whether it's a Starbucks lalalalalattee or your own home brewed tea…start your day with a liquid treat.
3) Hug your kids and tell them you love them. Even if they're 26 and 23. They will never get tired of hearing it. If your kids are grown and out of town, I know you'll connect. It's what families do.
4) If you aren't having brunch at an expensive all-you-can-eat buffet, enjoy a nice quiet space while sipping a cappucino and munch on one beautiful crisp croissant. Oh my…it's the simple things.
5) Go for a hike or walk with someone you love.
6) Take in a movie. Could be pretty relaxing on a Sunday afternoon.
7) For God's sake, don't cook! Let God know you are completely trusting that someone besides you will take care of you today. And…if you aren't exactly a mother, take yourself out to dinner!
8) If your mother has passed (as mine has), buy yourself 3 flowers. One for her, one for you and one for the next closest woman in your life.
9) Take at least one hour to do something totally relaxing or rejuvinating. You might take in a yoga class or sit and read one of the 6 books on your nightstand. Do something you love.
10) End your day with another prayer of thanksgiving. There are many women who long to be mothers. Some are never able to realize that dream. Live well for them and remember that you will be leaving an imprint for future generations.
Self Care starts with gratitude for this life, this body we are given and the opportunitiy to evolve into the best human being we can be. God bless you and Happy Mother's Day!
by bringmebliss | Apr 24, 2016 | Inspiration, Mind/Body
How AWAKE are you?
Did you notice how you're feeling today? Have you checked in with your mood or emotional side? What kind of energy are you dealing with? Have you noticed how your family is feeling? Did you hear the birds this morning? Did you notice the sky? Can you feel your toes now as you're reading this message?
Is you breath shallow or deep right now? I'm guessing it's shallow because we don't naturally breathe deep. We have to notice our shortness of breath before we can lengthen it. Being awake means being present to all that is going on within you and around you. Noticing everything means you see, hear or feel what's going on yet you don't necessarily attend to everything. You decide where to place your attention.
Sometimes when I'm walking towards the amazing spa I teach yoga at, I'm thinking about what I'm going to teach that day. Sometimes I will notice the weather; sometimes the beautiful landscape. Other times I will pray on my way towards the building. Other days I will notice how tired I am and then give myself a pep talk to say I can rest later.
When you practice mindfulness – being in the present moment – you tend to notice more what's going on around you and inside of you. It's a discipline; a practice. The natural state of bliss is only realized when you are still enough to pay attention. Being present with your thoughts and where they come from is helpful in deciding how you're going to move about your day or night.
Being AWAKE is being fully conscious – or as much as you can – on a 24/7 basis. When I'm fully conscious I notice everything! Aroma, landscape, temperature, body aches and pains, body positives, other people's behavior/moods/situations, surrounding energy. My antennae is up all the time.
Sit quietly and try this before closing your eyes: Widen your peripheral vision. In other words, see how much more of your environment you can take in and notice what you can see. As I write these words I can see my bookshelf to the right and a lighting fixture to my left. The carpet is in view also. Above me I see my bulletin board – even though I'm not looking at it. The arms on this chair I'm sitting on are just barely in my vision.
Now that you've expanded your vision, remember that you can do that anytime you want. Close your eyes now and repeat to yourself, "I notice everything, because I'm AWAKE." Sit for 10-15 minutes and enjoy this quiet meditation that is sure to expand what you take into your consciousness. Remember, you can choose what you hold onto and what you release. As you meditate, notice the thoughts that come your way other than the mantra, then give attention only to the ones that are necessary. Maybe come back to those thoughts later after your meditation time.
A great companion oil for this mantra is Peppermint. Peppermint essential oil is The Oil of a Buoyant Heart and is very invigorating. I use this oil every morning on the back of my neck to help me wake up! I also use it before a yoga practice myself and with my students.
Not all essential oils are created equal. If you want 100% Pure Certified Therapeutic Grade essential oils, fill out the form below and I will send you information on how to get them.
by bringmebliss | Apr 18, 2016 | Inspiration, Mind/Body
Spiritually Speaking…
This morning I was called up in church by my pastor who wanted to ask me some questions about yoga. He wanted to know (for the congregation) what yoga means.
I told him it means "to yoke" or "to unite" body, mind and spirit. I also said that the goal of yoga is to direct and focus mental activity. I also answered questions about what yoga looked like in our Genesis Yoga space and then guided our audience into a very short deep breathing sequence so they could experience the practice of yoga. The reason my pastor invited me to speak is because our church is focused on "Wholistic" living and I couldn't be more delighted. Pastor Pat reminded our peeps that the Body is the Temple.
Jesus said in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT "Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body."
When you truly surrender yourself to God and allow him to take up residence in your mind (which is in your brain, which is in your body), then you know that you will live and breathe and have your being in Him! This means cultivating an environment in which the Spirit can live – clean and inviting and non-toxic! Imagine a house guest coming over and having your place be a mess. This is our analogy to having a body and a life that can't be all it can be without taking care of it daily.
We honor God with our body – our whole body. Here are some things you can do to worship God with your body:
First, don't beat yourself up. If you haven't been taking care of your body until now, no worries. You can start now.
Take a different step with your body. Try a yoga class, meditation or even serve in your church or for an organization that needs volunteers. Use your body in a different way.
Sleep 7 hours per night or more. Our bodies need rest and rejuvination so we can have the energy we need to live out our God-given purpose.
Don't overeat.
Stop eating bad food. You know what it is…sugar, fried/fatty food, too much bread and sweets.
Eat healthy food – plenty of greens, small amounts of protein, some carb. Find the balance but get that healthy stuff in your body. You are what you eat!
Exercise. If you don't like yoga, walk, swim, run, ride a bike, play softball, do something physical!
Sit quietly in a room where you can focus and concentrate on today's mantra…My Body is My Temple. Repeat this mantra for at least 10-15 minutes. Ask what this means to you. What is really being stored in your body/mind? How is worship defined for you?
A great essential oil to pair with this meditation is Eucalyptus – The Oil of Wellness. Eucalyptus has a strong medicinal aroma and demonstrates its powerful effect upon the physical and emotional bodies. It has been studied for its ability to open up airways. It also encourages people to take full responsibility for their own health.
Not all essential oils are created equal. To get your 100% Pure Certified Therapeutic Grade Essential oils, just fill out the form below and someone will get right back to you!
by bringmebliss | Apr 11, 2016 | Inspiration, Mind/Body
My Go-To Mantra
God is with me.
Jesus loves me.
The Holy Spirit guides me.
As meditation goes, it's often difficult to just sit, breathe and enjoy the silence. So I have this "go-to" mantra that works for me. It reminds me that I'm not in this world alone, that I am truly loved and that there is a purpose for my existence. The guidance leads me to act from my highest self, which is connected to a Holy God. I am holy…I know this because Christ died for me and since I accepted him as my savior, I am free from sin – holy and blameless in his sight. Colossians 1:22 "he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him…"
I know I'm not perfect; but I am obligated to represent Christ as a holy person. So I stay as connected as I can to God through Christ and the Holy Spirit to feel worthy of this honor of being in invited into God's family. Not everyone accepts this invitation.
God is with me means that God is ever present. I need look no further than my next breath to realize that I am being breathed by the force that permeates nature and I credit this force to a loving God.
As history has shown, a man named Jesus, who claimed to be the great "I am", died on the cross as a sacrifice for me. He was thinking of me on that cross as he said, "Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise." He was speaking to a confessed sinner, one who represents potentially all humans on earth. Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.
Because of this knowledge that I have that he loves me, I can be confident of my worth in God's eyes and I don't have to settle for less than what he has for me on this earth. Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord; plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."
The Holy Spirit guides me. The Holy Spirit was committed to all believers once they accept Jesus. The Holy Spirit (like Jesus) has the same attributes as God, but is a person who inhabits my body and brain to be my conscience and my navigator. I completely trust the Spirit. When I am confused or need further help in figuring out life, I confide in those whom I trust are also connected to this Spirit. Not everyone believes in a Spirit. I choose to believe.
So my hope for you in this mantra, is to be able to recognize this Spirit in your life as the one who loves you no matter what and is ready to hold your hand through life. It's a pretty powerful mantra and even if you aren't a "believer", try this mantra on and see if you feel the invitation from Christ to let him be your guru!
Sit quietly for 5-10 minutes and repeat over and over, "God is with me. Jesus loves me. The Holy Spirit guides me." Let these prayers permeate your consciousness and see what happens. It certainly won't hurt you – and may even inspire you to see the greatness in you that God sees.
A great essential oil to use with this meditation is Frankincense – The Oil of Truth. Frankincense has been used for centuries and was given to baby Jesus as a gift along with Myrhh and Gold. This oil assists in spiritual awakening and guides individuals away from deception and into truth. Rub 1-2 drops on forehead and nose so you can inhale while reciting this mantra.
Not all essential oils are created equal. To get 100% Pure Certified Therapeutic Grade oils, fill out the form below or click here: http://goo.gl/DmT5x3
by bringmebliss | Apr 4, 2016 | Inspiration, Mind/Body
Reality is what is.
One of the things that gets us off track in life is not recognizing what is. We are in denial. We make excuses. We are afraid to accept life or situations in which we have found ourselves.
Today's meditation mantra is "I am aligned with reality." Think about what that means to you. Look up the words aligned and reality. How does this resonate in your life?
We don't realize that we actually create our own realities. We make decisions based on pure desire, lack of self-control or erroneous information.
Who is responsible for giving us the tools to recognize reality, accept it and live according to our God-given abilities? At first, we would expect our parents to give us such knowledge.
We know that not all parents are equipped to fulfill their children with enough love, guidance and acceptance that allow them to blossom into themselves. It's unfortunate, but it's a reality. We often become worn-out adults who didn't get the best foundation and relied solely on either our misguided instincts or we learned by experience. After a lifetime of making mistakes, we begin to realize what works and what doesn't. And we start to peel back the layers of protection and illusion.
According to "The Essence of Yoga – Reflections on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali", There are five mental activies. They are understanding, error, imagination, deep sleep and memory. "Understanding, or correct mental grasp, is a mode of apprehension, of measuring reality. Error appears to be correct grasp, but is actually a misunderstanding that originates either from the information itself or from its bad transmission, reception, or interpretation. Imagination is the faculty of creating things that do not correspond with reality (think…making up stories in your head that have no basis in reality). Deep sleep is dreamless sleep and memory is the faculty of recording elements that issue from the other four activities."
When you're afraid, when you're unsure, when you're confused, when you're angry, when life isn't going smoothly, you are most likely out of alignment. Just a note here…if you're going through grief which is a normal process after trauma, consider that there is a process and when aligned with the right kind of help and people, you can heal and feel peace again.
Yogis practice to develop a correct mental grasp that influences our evolution in a positive way. We try to reduce mistakes that cause suffering. Our goal is to use the imagination creatively, as it is the basis of all creation, artistic or otherwise.
The truth is, we can have good, sweet lives, or we can have messed up lives or just ordinary, run of the mill lives. But an extraordinary life is one that deals with the world as it truly has manifested. Accepting people as they really are, and loving them anyway. Working with what's real and being real – committed to being ourselves, loving and accepting ourselves, loving and accepting others. Finding tools that help us navigate life. Recognizing our mistakes are opportunities for change and growth. Forgiving ourselves for past errors of judgment. Moving forward to enjoy what you have at every given moment.
Sit quietly for 5-10 minutes and repeat several times the phrase, "I am aligned with reality." Keep this phrase in your consciousness and allow it to lead you daily into evolving peacefully and more fully into yourself.
A great essential oil to help you with this meditation is Bergamot. Bergamot is The Oil of Self-Acceptance. Bergamot is an uplifting and energizing essential oil – straight from nature. Not all essential oils are created equal. If you want 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade essential oils, fill out the form below or Contact Me.
by bringmebliss | Mar 28, 2016 | Inspiration, Mind/Body
Today's Mantra is about Seeking Guidance
Your GPS takes you where you want to go, right? Or maybe you're using Google maps. But you know the information doesn't come from your phone, or your GPS handpiece, right? It comes from the satellite.
Now, 
if you were to go through life with no instruction and try to wing it on your own, you wouldn't get very far. It just can't be done. We need help; we need guidance, teachors, mentors and friends to help us navigate through life.
I'm going to assume you believe in some kind of God – most people do – and we usually attribute an ever-present, all-knowing and all-powerful spirit who is responsible for our creation to that God. Now you don't have to believe in God to use this mantra; but you do need to believe that you're not all that, right? As humans, we are sensible if we understand we're not the center of the universe and that there is something much greater than ourselves. Call it the universe if you want, but there is some force that knows us very well and gives us information to navigate our journey.
Consider this scripture from Psalm 119, “… “But your servant meditates on Your statutes. Your testimonies also are my delight And my counselors.”
Sometimes, we ignore the information (which we often feel right in our gut) and we take wrong turns. And other times, when we are listening intently, we are right on target. Life seems sweeter when we have a guide.
Sit quietly and for 2-3 minutes, just focus on your breath. Notice the nuances of your breathing, whether you are holding onto your breath, have short and shallow breaths or are breathing deeper. Don't judge, just pay attention. After this breath awareness and with your eyes closed, repeat "God is the satellite to my inner compass" over and over silently to yourself. As your mind begins to wander – and it will – gently remind yourself that this is the time to connect with God the guide. Enjoy your time of doing nothing for 10-15 minutes but affirming that you wait upon God for direction in your life.
A wonderful essential oil to accompany your meditation is Clary Sage: The Oil of Clarity & Vision. To get 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils, fill out the form below or click this link: http://goo.gl/DmT5x3
