Food Glorious Food

I think the picture says how our festive day was and that was only the one of the three spreads we had in the house.

Hope you all had a great one and having time to relaxing after chowing down on all that yummy food.  Can't wait for Christmas as in our family it is an all out seafood and steak feast. And let me tell you, when I say seafood, I mean shrimp cocktail, baked lobster, oysters on a half shell, steamed dungeness crab, salmon, halibut and talapia. Want to come join our feast?

Wishing you all the best of the season. It is beginning to look and feel like Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving

I wanted to take this time to wish you all a very special Thanksgiving. I hope you are able to spend it with loved ones with abundance of laughter, love and happiness.

This is the time of year we acknowledge our gratitude for everything we have in our lives; the roofs over our heads, the food we have to eat, the jobs we can go to every day and most important, the people we care for and love. In this day and age, it is with gratitude that we need to live our lives so that abundance continues to flow to us.

My sincere wish is that it continues for each of you and may you step forward each day in a positive and grateful attitude so that it affects everyone around you to be the same.

I am so grateful and extremely blessed for having the most wonderful people in my life, including each and every one of you who take the time to read my blog, send me feedback and give me ideas to blog about. I have so many topics to blog about that I have yet to get to them but I will with your support and input.

Remember:

"Happy people do not have everything but they make the best of everything they have."

As always, I am humbled by your light. Let it shine! Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Dear Santa

Do you remember when we were little and we wrote letters to Santa, asking for a certain toy or game and telling him how good we were?

A couple weeks ago, the band, their significant others, some of the sound techs, Tony and I were hanging out after their recording session, drinking and talking about the kind of letters we wrote because I got teased for being a HUGE advocate for Christmas and how I was already listening to the music. It was a good time as we told one another what we wanted and there was definitely a lot of laughter that night into the morning.

A few friends and I are throwing a Christmas party at a friend’s lounge in a month and from that conversation I had an idea for our guests. In the invitation, we let everyone know that they need to bring their letter to Santa and we would be having a bon fire later that night at a park and would burn the letters unopened, so that it can be “taken” into the Universe.

My idea here is that you all write one as well and send it out into the Universe, whether it be burning into the sky or burying it into the ground. If you want to send anonymous via postal service, that works, too. Years ago, I used to work for the United States Postal Services and this time of year, we would get tons of letters from kids and yes, they have a department that takes in all the letters and answers them as well.

It might seem a bit childish but it also serves a purpose. To let our true feelings out, become that child again or if you weren’t given a chance to be a kid, you are given that chance now. Just pick up a pen and a pad of paper and start writing. You will be amazed how good you feel afterwards. And ask for the world, if you want!

Wishing you the best Christmas you have had thus far.

Do Something for Your Community

The holiday season is upon us and every year I try to do something in my community to help out.

There are so many who are not as fortunate as we are and are in need of food, clothes and shelter.

When you have a moment, go through your clothes and see what you can donate that is still in good shape but you never wear.

Go to a soup kitchen and volunteer when you have a free day instead of going for coffee, shopping or just doing nothing.

If you can afford, donate a little bit of cash to a shelter, that takes in people, to help subsidize their income.

Every little helps and each person can do a little something.

Namaste

Spiritual Sites

Connecting with sacred sites all over the world allows us to access its energy or power, if we don't have a chance to visit. It's the same principle as it we were to build an altar to those sites to acknowledge a God, Buddha or whatever Deity you worship.

There have been many known sites all over the world where miracles happen that cannot be explained so eventually they becomes sites for people to visit so they can tap into its power.

I think because as human, we crave to know the unknown, these sites become havens for us to rely on. Some draw hope from it for their loved ones who may be ill whilest others use the energy for meditation and healing for themselves.

It is believed that if you can tap into these sites, we can pull the wisdom buried deep inside the Universe. As if they become a faucet that we tap into and drink from, to gain knowledge about life and our purpose on this plane.

The most noteable is Stonehenge, but there have been discoveries of places filled with heavy energies like the Iron Age fogou caves of Cornwall, England or the pyramids of Meroe in the Sudan.

As much as we would like to have these hallowed sites to exist in remote or exotice places, there are many easily accessible lesser-known sites that can be quite stunning to experience.

I heard of a place called Serpent Mound in Ohio that was thought to be created by the ancient Adena peoples nearly 1,000 years ago to align with the summer and winter solstices, kind of like Stonehedge. No one knows for sure why it is known as a sacred site but people could feel the energy from the place flow into them.

I had one experience in Northern California in the Santa Cruz mountains. The place is called the Mystery Spot and you can feel a strong energy flow into you from your feet up. They have a couple boards that are laid out in an incline and if you were to take a ball and put it at the bottom of the board, it would actually move up the board to the top. Reverse gravity, I think. I know that I tried to meditate there once and it was extremely hard to concentrate with that energy pouring into you.  But I guess it could be considered another sacred site.

There are many reasons why we feel that certain sites call to us and I think we can use the calling to tap into its energy to align ourselves with the Universe. Whatever reason you need, it is a good time to sit and think about those places and feel how you can connect to it and it to you.

Personally, I love to go to parks and sit under an old tree and feel the energy flow through me while I relax, people watch, read and meditate. That is a sacred experience to me.

I was taken to one place in Connecticut, called the Fox Hill Tower about a 1 & 1/2 years ago. It was amazing. So whenever I am in Connecticut, it has become a stop for me to visit, sit by the edge of the hill or go into the tower itself and look out over the valley and breath in its view. It is breathtaking, soothing and healing all at once so I thank the person for showing me that special place that has become another sacred site to me in Connecticut.

May you find your peace within so that you can pour that peace out into the world.

Namaste

Mindfulness

People always wonder what mindfulness means and I think that if you ask 5 people, you would get 5 different answers.

This is strictly my opinion from my learnings growing up in Japan, learning about daily routines of the Japanese people and their lives, including my mom.

In the 1970's, clinical psychologists/psychiatrists "created," and I use the term loosely, techniques for people to use to calm the stresses in their lives, to understand the world around them and dim the depression that people feel by giving them a different way to cope with their feelings and thoughts. In the new era, they are handing out prescriptions for anti-depressants like candy, which I don't agree with. You are not handling the problem but masking it.

Within the Buddhist religion, the so-called techniques go back centuries and have much more deeper meanings.  What we know of as meditation is first and foremost used.

The way it is define in psychology books is as "a non-judgmental awareness of our present, in which each thought, feeling, or sensation that comes up is given acknowledgement and accepted as is."  In simple terms, "It is what it is." It's funny but I say that all the time so my friends have coined it as "my quote."

What does that mean, though? Say you feel sad. You know the feeling. You feel it in your head, your heart and in your body. It is there so you accept it. There is nothing to change about it because it is ok to feel that way.  But you don't act on it. What I mean is, if you are sad, it is ok to cry, to step back and pull away so you can go through the emotions and to feel it but you once it is done, don't alienate yourself from others because of it.

It is being aligned with yourself. Knowing how you feel and letting it come through without guilt, which unfortunately is something that was taught to us over the years. We have to be happy. We cannot show our sadness because it is a weakness. How wrong we have been all these years to do that to humanity. We have so many who are taught that and each year, depression becomes the highest form of illness in people.

Without our minds, our bodies wither away.

I grew up knowing a certain type of Zen. It was practiced by everyone in Japan without being attached to a religion because believe it or not, 35% of Japanese are Catholics but still practice Zen within their daily lives. I never knew the full name until recently when I came across an article about it; Bompu Zen.

Philip Kapleau, who was a teacher of Zen Buddhist explains that "Bompu Zen, being free from any philosophy or religious content, is for anybody and everybody. It is a Zen practiced purely in the belief that it can improve both physical and mental health. Since it can almost certainly have no ill effects, anyone can undertake it, whatever religious beliefs they happen to hold or if they hold none at all. Bompu Zen is bound to eliminate sickness of a psychosomatic nature and to improve the health generally."

Therefore, it is good for those who have mental issues with depression and other mind related illnesses or stress.

Have you ever taken the time to really feel an emotion? Let it take you over completely and you swim in it. It is hard to come out of it when you are completely inundated with it. But you know that once it is over, it will let you go and you can feel better.

Let me digress for a little bit.

This is a simple explanation and by no means a way to diagnose yourself but depression starts when you feel an emotion, one you don't want to face and don't let it loose. You push it down and it settles. Again, something else happens, the emotion is bottled down on top of the other one and it starts to grow but it has not caught you yet. Now imagine you go years with this... it finally catches up to you and all those emotions you have had inside, come tumbling out but you cannot control it and it overtakes your mind. Depression starts.

You feel out of control. You feel lost. You feel like you are drowning. What do most of us do? Cover it by drinking too much. Doing drugs that numb you. Eating too much and other behaviors that cover it all. Unfortunately, they are all temporary solutions. Eventually it takes over and you go down and when you do, it is with a BANG.

It hurts like hell when you finally come face to face with all those emotions you kept bottled inside and you can only lie there in a ball as your heart and mind are ripped to shreds and weep uncontrollably. At that point, you have clarity and it becomes an awakening you don't want to see but ultimately you have to face, which is hard because as you face them, you also come to the realization of all the people you hurt and all the things you said and did without meaning, that you now have to own. That is a hard place to be when you finally awaken.

The other side is that you never see because it ends in death. People say things like, "they took the easy way out."  How would they know and is it really? Have you tried to kill yourself? It is hard. Your instinct to survive kicks in and it stops you. How can I say that? I was in a deep depression once and tried. It was an experience I will never try again but I know how close I was to that edge and it scared the hell out of me. Either way, this is one topic we cannot discuss accurately because no one who has died has come back to tell us. But it was a choice they made and did. It is what it is.

Ok, back to mindfulness.

Another thing about it. It is about being connected to people but not being attached to them. Yes, there is a difference.

Our energies are all connected. I know some hate to think that way but we are ultimately, a collective energy source of the Universe. I am not here to convince you or to make you think my way, but that is just what I believe.

Let me give you a couple examples. My mom is very intuitive and on many occasions, she would call and and we would chat but on some occasions, she would just come out and say, what is going on? I feel something from you. I could be sad, angry or not feeling and she would just know and call.

Another experience I had with being connected to someone was I was driving home from grocery shopping a couple years ago and I felt this overwhelming sadness from out of nowhere when I was in a very good mood. I had this feeling that I had to get home quickly because I was going to get a phone call. The moment I stepped into my place, my cell phone rang and his voice came on. I could tell immediately he was not in a good place by his voice. We talked for hours and at the end, before we hung up, he said, "thank you for being there for me. I rushed home today because I was feeling really sad and needed to hear your voice. I just needed to talk to you." That is when I knew it was his energy calling to me while I was driving. I had that strong connection with him a lot of times while I knew him.

We can be connected to certain people more strongly but we don't need to become attached to them. That is another part of mindfulness. Being connected but not attached allows for each of us to grow, expand and change. With the connection, it allows you to accept that in everyone. If we get attached, what happens is that we don't want change or if we do, we want it to be our way, not theirs. There is a danger to that and ultimately, it ends a lot of relationships or friendships.

Ok, I think I went on enough that you know a little about what it is. You can make your own decision and research it more on your own or send me an email and we can talk about your view so that I can expand my knowledge.

Here are some exercises that you can do to promote mindfulness:

Meditation

This one is a hard one to start because your mind likes to wander, especially if it is the type to overwork itself. I am guilty of that at times. Taking the time to empty your mind, allows the emotions to recheck themselves, gives your mind the time to adjust to handle them.  Start with 5 minutes a day and continue to increase the time you meditate until you get to an hour a day. You will find that your day is easier to handle and nothing gets you down.

Deep Breathing
Taking time to stop and breath in deep, gives you time to step back and re-adjust your thinking. To do this, you just sit in a quiet place or even if you cannot find a quiet place at work, go into your car and do it. Sit tall, hands on your lap and breath in deep and slow and hold for 5 seconds. Breath out slowly. Breath in slow and deep again and continue. Do this for 5 minutes and you will find that it has calmed you and your mind. Doing this from time to time during the day, keeps you stress free.

Music
This one is hard because we all have different taste in music but one way to re-adjust your thinking is changing the kind of music you listen to. If you are in a melancholy mood, it is ok to listen to that type of music, if it gets you through that moment but if it adds to the mood, change it to upbeat, danceable music to allow your mind to change its thinking. One music I find helps a lot of people is classical as it had no lyrics and you can flow with it.

Cleaning
Oh, yeah. Cleaning house can change how you feel. If you start off feeling blue, you start to clean and at the end, you look around and you are surrounded by a nice environment, it uplifts you and gives you a better feeling inside. You accomplished something so that will help to change your thought process as well.

Feel Your Thoughts
When it hits you, allow it to come through. If it is sadness, let the tears flow. If you are upset or angry, allow it to vent. Once it has come through, think about it constructively, accept that it happened and then let it go. There are times we have to hold it in when you are around people but once you are alone, it is good for you to let it out and have its way. That way you can face it and allow it to go.

Choice
One more thing... choose how you think. This is a huge step in mindfulness. You choose how your day will be. There are a couple quote that I like. One is by Abraham Lincoln. "People are just about as happy as they make up their minds to be." The other author is unknown but the quote is, "Change your mind, change your attitude." You have the power to choose your thoughts and change your mind. Another good quote... "Attitude is everything!"

Well, now that I got you snoozing, I will close by saying, I hope that if you feel blue a lot of times, you take the time to seek someone to talk to. Don't try to do this on your own. It helps to get it out and to let your mind be cleared off negative thoughts.

Once you own your past, remember that you may have hurt people and you need to go back and redeem yourself. That was a hard thing for me to do but once I finished, a great weight lifted each time with each person. I am a better friend to them now than I was then and it made me better for the experience as I am sure it will for you as well.

As always, I am truly humbled by your light.

Being Single

I was deeply in love once. The do-anything and die-for-you love. I tried hard to let go but it kept a hold on me for a long while; but thinking of all that was said, I have finally let go of it.

I didn’t like that I needed to hear his voice. I didn’t like that he had great thoughts, ideas, jokes or good taste in music. I didn’t like that I needed to hear him sing his songs. I didn’t like that I needed to be with him.

It sucked being in love that deep especially when he didn’t care at all for me. Yes, he straight out told me. He was in it for the fun.

So when I was finally able to take off the rose-colored glasses, I realized that I like being single. I like coming home and not worrying about someone to take care of. I like that I can do and say what I please. I like that I don’t have to tell them where I am going.

I like that I have my sanity back.

Wonderful Time of the Year

I love this time of year! And yes, I am one of those that is already listening to Christmas music and enjoying the excitement that comes every holiday season. I even have my signature holiday necklace on so my friends are shaking their heads in mirth. My sparkly snowflake! Hee hee!

I mean, aren’t we basically already in the season now that Halloween is over? I have a lot of gatherings that I have been invited to and since December is so busy, most people have started them now in November. It’s a way to expand the fun and enjoy more of the season. A time when family and friends are converging together, making memories and enjoying each others’ company.

Only way to make it better is to have snow and a fireplace but that will be next holiday season as I should be settle in Connecticut. I mean I will be there soon but the holidays will be over so it won’t be the same.

I think I love this time of year so much is because how people change a bit to be kinder, gentler and friendlier; more willing to help others and be more open. That excitement and the feelings we had as kids, returns as we are reminded that Santa is watching out for the naughty or nice kids. But remember, nice with a little naughty is very good… ha-ha!

I wish I could bottle up the feelings of the season and pass it out when it is in the middle of the summer and tempers are at a boiling point, weather and people-wise. I think people fall into a rhythm of nature and mimic it. Kind of like, hot weather, hot tempers; cold weather, cooler temperaments.

I hope that you can be filled with the energy of this time of year. Enjoy as you watch kids as their eyes light up with anticipation. Take that feeling with you every day as you go about your business. Pass that feeling on and see how it can change another person’s perspective of the day. Smile at someone and show them they matter. You don’t know how you, one person, can affect another life.

Did you know that the holiday season is the number one time when people commit suicide because if they are alone, feel lonely and feel they don’t have anyone or anywhere to turn, it seems to be the viable way out of their misery? Can you imagine if your smile to one person that was feeling that way in that moment, changed how they felt, could affect the outcome of their life? It is something to ponder.

One thing I am doing is changing how my nieces and nephew think of the Christmas. They always think presents, presents and more presents but they have so much that they are on material overload. This year, I am spending a day with each one individually to give them my time and focus on them on their day. We are doing an activity and lunch of their choice rather than buying a toy they won’t use after a few days. It gives them a chance to see another way to spend the holidays besides opening presents.

My oldest niece, who is 9, wants to go with me to volunteer at a soup kitchen for the homeless at Thanksgiving. I am glad that we talk all the time about what we can do to make a difference in the world. Even though she is too young, as I believe she has to be 12, the mere fact that she wants to do it, means a lot. My little Gemini, she is so precious. We are very close and have some pretty intense conversations, even at her age. She amazes me with her generous heart and soul, her gentleness with people and her amazing light that shines out of her. It is never too early to teach kids about spirituality. She loves to talk about it and even at her young age, the things that she thinks about and shares is a learning experience for me.

I hope that each day is filled with light and love and you are in a place to enjoy the moments with family and friends with abundance and joy.

Now before you leave, take time to think of how you can make your holiday season the best ever, not just for others but for you!

It IS the most wonderful time of the year!  YAY!!!

I am truly blessed to have you all in my life, even though I don't know you all personally, I am very grateful you stop and read my blog. If I can make a tiny difference in one person's life, it does my soul good.

My cup runneth over.

Now go out and enjoy the season and pass on the light!

Garden of Life

It’s funny how I get into conversations with friends and we start to compare our friends and family to nature, more specifically, plants, flowers or trees. I found that as we talk more, we are like a huge garden that is planted, grown, nurtured and ultimately dies and the cycle continues. There are so many different types of plants, flowers and trees that we can compare to people to.

There are the dangerous types like poison ivy or poison oak that can be toxic, hurt you, make you itch and give you a really bad rash. There are those clinging vines that are just that; they are clingy, always in your business and you can't get rid of them.

You have those who are like huge oak trees; they are steadfast, reliable, always strong and supportive. There are the willow tree that protect you from life’s harshness as it hang over you as you sit under it protection. The tall redwoods that stand solid and stoic without budging.

Then there are the flowers in our garden that are beautiful to look at but some have thorns that hurt us but protects them. The ones that have a nice scent but may not be the most beautiful. The ones that are pretty, simple and just used as adornments. Or the flowers that are pretty but can be eaten so they are useful.

Do you know people that fit any of what was described?  I came up with this list with a handful of friends over a couple bottles of wine.  The conversation was animated, insightful yet fun to think of who is what, but not in a mean way, which was not our intention in the least.

I said it myself; I used to be kind of the clingy vine with roses that stuck her thorn inside you if you got to close. I think of myself now as more of a carnation. Pretty to look at, useful for different events but not overstated or understated. I think that is me. I don't need the limelight like a lot of other people I know. I am not really comfortable in it but I can hold my own if I have to be in it. I dress down and dress up well either way so whatever the mood or circumstances, I am pretty much dressed appropriately; just like a carnation on a mantel at home or at a birthday, wedding or a funeral.

Think of different plants and put your spin on what you think you are. Would love to hear your take on this topic and you can post a comment anonymously if you want, in case you didn't know.

As always, the light in me honors the light in you.

Life Goes On...

Sometimes, you can't write how you feel but you stumble across a beautiful song and it says it all for you. This song absolutely gives me chills. The lyrics are powerful so have a listen.

"Heaven's waiting... it's time to move on..."

Those two lines speak to me... Yeah, that kind of day for some realization.

Namaste

Religion and Life

I grew up with a father who was not religious and didn't have a strong base in what was beyond death. You lived and you died was the way he saw it. My dad grew up in a very dysfunctional family with alcoholic parents who saw religion differently. My grandfather was Protestant and my grandmother was Catholic. Beat your kids but go to church and God forgives your sins for the week. Not a good way to see life or be in it, for that matter.

My mother, on the other hand, is strong in her Buddhist religion but in a very spiritual way. Growing up during World War II affected her way of thinking, how she was treated and how she treated those around her. It made her kinder and gentle as she saw the devastation as a young child and she took that with her as she grew up into adulthood. She will be the first to admit that there was a period in her early adult life that she let religion go and material things became important but she realized in time that what was inside her heart and soul, how she lived her life was more important than what she owned. She said it was a good experience to go through so that she can speak from it.

She is an amazing woman and people love being around her. I don't say this because she's my mom but because people love how they feel around her. They tell me this all the time. My friends always tell me how much they love her and how lucky I am to have her in my life. She is kind, calm, caring, affectionate and at peace with herself and life so it extends out to those she encounters. She is stopped many times because people look into her eyes and are drawn in by the peace they see. She is a true Buddhist.

I have learned a lot from her the past ten years as I have stopped being ignorant about my surroundings and more aware of life in general and globally.

I grew up with multiple religions around me but with no true guide or teacher to give me the information as to what path I could walk. I turned to Wicca because it came close to what I believed as a 13 year old. The old adage "watch what you ask for" definitely was what I should have done but I met a witch who took me on the path to open my eyes to not just Wicca but all religions. It was easy to fall into it as it, like Buddhism, it is a pagan as well as a nature-based religion.

She taught me to keep my mind open as she knew I had a background in Buddhism and she noticed that I tend to use that in some of my every day living. Mom's influence, for sure. She told me to study all the religions and ask questions of their leaders. So I did.

I read the Holy Bible cover to cover several times and spoke to priests. I read the Torah, Koran and other holy books and literature and spoke to rabbis, ministers and preachers. By the time I finished what I thought was my learning of religions, I was in my mid 20's and life changed. I stopped religion for a while and concentrated on keeping my marriage working. That ended up being a bust and I got into the music business and went a different route with heavy drinking and partying. It became a way to hide what was inside of me; failed marriage, dead end job, selling my house and other hosts of issues I didn't want to face.

Then I got the shock of my life... a 23 year-old kid, high on a mixture of drugs, wanted to go backstage to meet one of the acts and was stopped at the back door. He had gotten his 4-inch Swiss Army knife into the show and was angry for being stopped so he pulled it out and threatened a co-worker who was at the door working. A friend who worked in production, Victor, happen to come out and saw what was going on, stepped in to help her. The kid and he struggled with the knife but Victor lost his footing, the kid had pinned him to the floor and started to thrust the knife into his chest. By the time another co-worker had gotten there, Victor was stabbed 44 times in the heart. He did not survive and died on the operating table. The kid is now spending the rest of his life in prison. That was 13 years ago.

It was a wake up call that I needed desperately and I got my head out of my ass and got out of the business. What kind of role model was I to my daughter? Hypocrite didn't even start to say how I felt. When she was older, she and I had a heart to heart and I told her of those days. She never knew because she said I always treated her as the most important thing in my life. She always was and always will be and I am grateful that I didn't destroy that.

I had continued to call myself Wiccan but when I came back to religion but it was more in a spiritual way. I found that Wicca was too dogmatic. What I realized was that I believed more in what is now being called Oneness, with a huge portion of it being Buddhist driven.

As I teach spirituality to kids now, I ask each one of them to bring their ideas and ideals to the table so that we can talk about it. It seems a lot of kids really like the concept of Buddhism these days. It is about peace inside and out. As I was taught, I am asking them to be open minded and read about other religions and take in only the things that make sense to them and leave the other stuff out. If you don't believe it, why incorporate it into your life? The bottom line is that how we treat ourselves and others is the most important.

Now, let me just say this. As much as we need to show compassion to ourselves and others, we don't need toxic people in our lives who talk a good talk but use people for their own end and don't walk the walk. Show them compassion by letting them find their own way and letting them go. It is good for your soul and your Karma not to get further involved in their drama or ill ways. They will never get it, if you continue to enabled them to be the way they are.

One component in all the religions is the afterlife. I think a lot of religions are too dogmatic and people are told if they don't believe a certain way within a religion, they won't go to Heaven. I think if you treat others well, show kindness and compassion and stand by your words, in the end, you lived a good life. I knew someone who didn't really believe in a God, per say or in the afterlife. He thought when we died, we went into a "forever sleep" as he called it. Great concept but I would like to believe that there is more to life than an abrupt end or sleep.

I believe in reincarnation and Buddhism is one religion that follows that dogma. Another factor I love about Buddhim is it allows for humans to make mistakes but you also need to know that you pay a price for the mistakes, which we all know as Karma or in a way for people to understand... what goes around, comes around. If you wish ill will towards someone, in the end, it will come back to you. In Wicca, it is believed that when it does return, good or bad, it is three times of what it was when sent out. That being said, I wish you all lots of love, happiness, laughter and light.

And a Japanese Buddhist prayer to you all...

なみょほれんげきょ (nahm-myo-hoe-ren-gay-kyo)

As always, the light in me honors the light in you.