Seasons Come and Seasons Go

Sitting at the two-tier coffee table of my new studio apartment I decide to turn off all of the lights, light a candle, and write. The process by which I come to this decision is seemingly spontaneous, random, and I will admit that I stared at my desktop for a few minutes before finally deciding on what it was exactly I wished to write about, so here it is ...

I have made a significant change in my reality because of the thoughts that I have been thinking.

It seems that time has passed so quickly one would think that this moment I am experiencing right now and the moment I remember from the last time I posted an entry had always existed side by side, sitting right beside one another, like a stranger who sits beside you on a crowded bus. And from this position in these parallel realities it also seems like I made this giant leap from one moment to the other.

From an objective experience it is simple to explain -certain positions at my current job began to shift, openings became available, I became a manager, my wage increased, I found my own place and now here I am, contemplating the objective experience of yet another summer passing as I stare into the flame of the candle on this table.

Yet there is my subjective experience, this perspective that I feel exists above everything that happens and happened, that is essentially the stuff that these experiences are made of -consciousness manifest. I feel guided to say that this experience somehow escapes quantification. I know certainly time has passed since visualizing more income and a wonderful place to live, yet I feel as though I can't account for the speed with which these "things" came into being. Which brings me to my next point and a reiteration of my previous one:

Moments, those we deem possible and impossible, exist side by side, one in front of the other, stacked on top and buried below. We are our thoughts, and our thoughts guide us to become and partake in those moments we desire to manifest. Material objects, experiences, and situations aren't just attracted into our reality, they are created from the fertile grounds of Consciousness itself.

As always I remain grateful that I have been reintroduced to Consciousness, to Source, to MySelf. I'm also pretty grateful that I have been reintroduced to this little ol' Blog of mine. ;)

For You, Not To You.

Alignment. Balance. Being centered. How in the world do we keep these aspects of our spirituality consistent on a daily basis when it seems that we lose our steam in the midst of everything that happens in our busy lives?

At this point in time these are the very questions that are weighing my thoughts. First and foremost, though, I return to gratitude --I am so grateful that I have these questions, that my reality is presenting me numerous amounts of opportunity to truly discern my wants and desires. Like I’ve mentioned in previous blogs the notion of Contrast is important, if not vital, for manifesting all of our intentions. Without the presence of all this questioning I would not come to the exploration of resolutions to remedy these momentary blocks. In my absence from this blog I have been pinching off Source (as Abraham would say), and it is indeed reflecting in my reality.

I’ve family members and friends who are in need of inspiration, sustenance, and spiritual motivation, the very things that I find myself needing this moment, and if it is true that we project that which we reflect, then this must mean that I must give these things to them (and to strangers for that matter!) and expect no reciprocation since the very act of giving to them means giving to myself.

(Just a quick side note: in the very moment that I wrote the previous paragraph I felt a giant wave of energy come over me and leave me as a sigh of relief. Source that felt good!)

Sometimes it’s easy to fall off course or stray away from a path that we have determined for ourselves, but even novelty and unfamiliar circumstances for which we have no frame of reference to deal with brings about challenges that stimulate our minds, both intellectually and spiritually. Though it shouldn’t be, it is difficult to find balance between the physical, material world in which we live and process our lives, and the spiritual, intangible realm that fuels our physical bodies. It is easy to identify solely with the former, but as Ranier Maria Rilke said, “We know little, but that we must hold to what is difficult is a certainty that will not forsake us … that something is difficult must be a reason the more for us to do it.”

Coming upon revelations that add to our spiritual growth should not be easy. To meet new faces and discover new places that challenge our beliefs expand our spirit and help us discover parts of the greater consciousness from which we all originated. When challenges arise that are seemingly difficult I have to remind myself (constantly) that the Universe is helping me and reintroducing me to Source. For the time being this is the only explanation that makes sense, for I’ve learned a long time ago that there is no Me inside this body that is happening independently from the Me outside of this body, if that makes any sense.

As I’ve stated before there is no clear cut path, and even the paths that we determine beforehand change constantly as we encounter new things. Every individual has a different path with (roughly) the same destination. In my absence I’ve managed to manifest many people who are willing to help me on my journey to Self-Realization(/Re-Introduction to Consciousness). I’ve learned some helpful techniques in moving and guiding energy using physical motions (eg. Tai Chi Chuan and Qi Gong), I’ve been meditating more frequently and I’ve been learning more about the main chakras in our bodies.

Usually on my routine walk to work I set a few intentions that involve either the shift ahead, projects that I wish to complete for the week, or interactions with people. Today, along with the usual list I added the desire to open and unclog my Third Eye chakra (located between and above the eyes, indigo-colored) in order to see things a little more clearly, physically and spiritually speaking. Essentially I was trying to manifest more spiritual guidance. I did this while waiting at a crosswalk, closing my eyes for a few a moments and immediately upon opening them a man with a very vibrant indigo bandana on his head walked past me. During my shift I had a great conversation with my physical-spiritual guide/friend/co-worker Antoinette, detailing the things I’ve mentioned in this blog. Soon after I saw a woman wearing an indigo/vibrant, sky-blue dress. I consider these events as clear reflections of my own contemplations and immediate manifestations to the intentions I had set.

So, after all of this, what exactly can we do when we feel ourselves becoming unaligned, imbalanced or un-centered?

-One of the most important things is that we recognize these feelings, understand their validity (and understand that we are indeed pinching off Source), but also remain in an attitude of gratitude, for the thoughts and questions that come with the experience are the very things that will bring us back into alignment with Source and the greater consciousness.
-Talk to close friends (and even strangers!) -some of the most eye-opening epiphanies occur in the midst of conversation.
-Meditate.
-Write, paint, sing, scream, busy yourself with any activity that stimulates your entire being.
-Most importantly say Thank You to your “problems,” be grateful for any and all of the difficulty you may experience, and remember that things are not happening to you, they are happening for you.

The Inner Me and the Outer Me

Lately I’ve experienced a surge of artistic inspiration that has lead to the completion of many painted canvasses, turning my room into a pseudo-gallery of sorts. While I’ve had moments of inspiration in the past, they were exactly that --moments, never lasting for more than a few hours, simple artistic endeavors that amounted to half-finished pieces strewn about the floor.

While gratitude certainly plays a huge role in all of this, it also goes beyond it, turning gratitude into a foundation on which all of this inspired creation rests. Being grateful is no longer an exercise --it has become a belief, a thought practiced over and over again as Abraham would say, and I can say with certainty that it has been ingrained into my being in a way that it has never been before.

But I digress.

During the past year, since my uncle passed away, I’ve had some very interesting out-of-body experiences, experiences that I’ve come to discover as astral projections. After having had these experiences I became deeply fascinated with the astral realm and, more importantly, the methodology for projecting one’s consciousness out of the physical body and into the astral realm. I started reading some of Erin Pavlina’s articles on the subject and I also purchased Robert Bruce’s Astral Dynamics, and both described my experiences to a T. I would like to now share a few of those experiences with you, and I promise once I do I’ll explain how it lead (or at least how I think it lead) to the recent burst of creativity I’ve experienced.

The First Time I Went Astral (And remembered it)

It had been a regular day. I woke up, had breakfast, did some journaling, and began getting ready for my shift at work. It went by rather quickly and I wasn’t too tired when I arrived home. As I mentioned before in a previous blog entry my sleeping pattern hasn’t been the most consistent within the span of the past year, so with that said I did all of my insomniatic activities such as checking my e-mail and other online messages, reading some blogs, reading some books, and watching T.V. Then, finally I headed to bed and fell asleep easier than usual.

Before I continue on with the actual experience of being outside of my physical body I feel I should preface it with the fact that I have, throughout my entire life, had experiences with sleep paralysis, something else that I have come to learn is quite intricately connected to astral projection. In my experience with sleep paralysis I wake up fully conscious yet unable to move any part of my body. But accompanying this is also a sense of fear, the root of which I have not yet been able to understand or identify until now. There have also been instances where I feel as though a presence of some sort is sitting on top of my body, or sitting nearby watching me. Eventually, and sometimes this will last for several minutes, I gather up enough will and energy to move a limb or to make a noise which usually breaks the paralysis and sends me back to sleep.

The feelings I begin to have at the onset of sleep paralysis is very distinct, and so during this particular experience I felt as though sleep paralysis was yet again looming over the horizon of my twin-sized bed. The next thing I knew I was awake, feeling as though I would soon slip into the usual sensation of not being able to move, but what happened instead was something I had never experienced prior to that very moment. I felt the strangest tingling in my toes, a very deep vibration that seemed to be coming out of the very molecules of my body, moving up through my legs and settling into the pit of my stomach. I can’t remember exactly if I fell asleep again or if at that very moment I made the exit out of my body. At any rate, the sensation of actually being outside of one’s body is a very surreal feeling. I was acutely aware of my body being in the position it was in in my bed, yet at the same time I was also aware that I wasn’t inside of it. As a matter of fact it felt as though I was floating right above it, and soon thereafter it felt as though I was rotating around near the edge of the bed looking up at the ceiling. The next thing I knew I was awake, back in my body, and it was morning.

The Second Time I Went Astral (And Attempted to … Do Stuff)

Again I found myself waking up in bed, experiencing the same sensations as I mentioned above --the vibrations in my toes, moving up my legs and settling into my stomach. After this happened I was actually able to will myself to get out of bed and move toward my window. I remember I had specifically told my brother that the next time I had an astral experience I would fly. So I when I got to my window I attempted to walk through it, however as I tried to move through the wall it felt as though the window screen was preventing me from going all the way through. When I realized that I also felt something tugging at my back. Then and there I decided that perhaps I wasn’t yet ready to start flying around San Diego, so I started walking back toward my bed. On my way back though I happened to look at myself in the mirror, something that I haven’t even been able to do in my dreams, lucid and not lucid. For the most part I looked like me except it seemed like there were ripples moving around my face. I turned and saw my body in bed and that’s the last thing I remember before waking up.

Energy Centers and My Chakras

Reading just a few chapters out of Astral Dynamics really inspired to me to energize my Self (and thus my energy body? Sorry, still wrapping my mind around some of this stuff and the techniques involved) in order to have controlled and conscious exit astral projections. I went to Erin Pavlina’s site, checked out her article on chakras and actually tried the exercise on “unclogging” one’s chakras, setting them into bright, spinning motion. I’ve also been doing a lot of meditation, focusing inward, guiding myself through relaxing images in my mind in attempts to ask my spirit guides for help. In turn I believe that all of these activities have somehow tapped into my creative energies, thus leading me to all of the pieces that I have been recently producing.

The Inner You and the Outer You.

As I’ve stated before in previous entries, that which you project you reflect, and this entire experience that I’ve been describing thus far is no exception. The focus I gave to the energy within me without a doubt tuned my thoughts to a very specific vibration, a vibration which allowed me to attract things into my physical reality that helped perpetuate the very things to which I was giving my attention. The Inner Me and the Outer Me, so to speak, were meeting on common spiritual ground, and I understood this was so because of how I felt during the process --inspired, excited, passionate, and most importantly grateful.

I’ve manifested many different outlets of opportunity to get my artwork out into the public. I had a seemingly serendipitous encounter with a lady on the street as I carried two of my canvasses home after work, which ended with her commissioning me to do two pieces for her and her boyfriend’s space in Downtown, San Diego. And just recently a friend of mine contacted me and asked if I’d like to have my work displayed at Dyke March’s art walk this summer.

A lot of religious people have conversations with God, whether in prayer at church or in prayer at the comfort of their own home. I liken this to the process of intention-manifestation, the way I have come to understand it anyway. You really have to be clear to the Universe, to your Self essentially, about what you want, know deep down inside that YOU are the Source from which everything else comes into fruition, and supplement that with positive energy and deep gratitude. Through the Law of Attraction circumstances and co-creators must come into your reality because of the vibration of your thoughts. The process of looking into my inner-being, especially during these past few months, has been a very mind-opening experience, in that I’ve been able to create, attract, and interact with the elements of my reality in a way that I’ve never been aware of before.

It’s been pretty freakin’ awesome if you ask me … Well? Go on, ask me in a comment! =)

Contrast

I’m not at all perfect (yet … hehe …). With that said I’ll admittedly say that sometimes I find it such a chore, reminding myself where I come from and what I believe in, what I’ve chosen to practice, especially on days like this when something seemingly unexpected comes along and challenges everything I know and have come to know.

I’ve got to really try hard and remind myself that THIS (motions, with hands, signifying everything, all-encompassing) is indeed what I wanted, what I asked for. And that’s true, I know this, but I can’t seem to explain why it is I vibrate at such a low frequency sometimes. Eventually I remember, though. When I re-open myself to Source, when I re-open myself up to my Self, I remember with such a sweet simplicity that it seems almost absurd to have forgotten in the first place.

Contrast.

As I have come to understand it within the context of manifesting my intentions and utilizing the Law of Attraction, contrast is a good thing. It's good to know what you don't want, but definitely wiser to move past that knowledge once recognized and not dwell. Instead, give thanks to that contrast, to that vast infinity of differences in our shared reality, for it is only through contrast that we are truly able to identify that which we do want in our reality, thus making our desires that much more specific. It is indeed this specificity which makes it easier for the Universe to hear and deliver that which we request. We know that X is not what we want, and so, we focus on Y instead.

Naturally this recognition does not come without practice and refinement, without the occasional low-frequency day in which we find ourselves asking “Why do I seem to attract things into my reality that I do not want?” And though the answer is sometimes not readily available to us as we ask that question, I’ve found that it’s extremely important to always revert back to the analytical minds we were all blessed with.

-Take note of yourself and what you are feeling.
-Recognize it.
-Accept it.
-Accept the catalyst that elicited your subsequent thoughts and emotions.
-Most importantly give a big, fat THANK YOU to it, for it will inevitably lead you to thoughts of what it is you do want.

These thoughts will be good and they will feel good. These are our beautiful desires in the process of fruition. I like to think of the “Unwanted Thoughts” as seeds that are full of potential, potential that we have the ability to shape and direct. It’s only right to say thank you to the very thing that lead you to what you wanted.

I may be reaching some sort of redundancy with this, but when is gratitude, appreciation and love ever redundant? (Hint: Never!)

Motions in Being Still

Worked with Antoinette tonight. Always profound experience working with her. Reason? Chosen to make every experience with her a profound one. Said Michael really valued and appreciated hanging out at hookah bar last week … really good change from his usual scene. Feel good about this, feel grateful to share experience in which someone feels and thinks on another level. Monetary help becomes redundant. Speaking of which -saw parents last night on way back from Hollywood with the boys. Felt good. Feel good that I felt good. Didn’t feel grief -maybe letting go is valuable (gasp!). Maybe letting go, being still, is truest form of mobility.

At aforementioned hookah bar now, reminding self that today I will practice non-judgment. Difficult. Spent majority of life making snap judgments about people, then writing about them. Difficult. Easy to recognize difficulty. Trying.

Two guys sit diagonally across from me. Make me think about this. Interaction with fairly attractive girl sitting next to them elicits thought(s). Side glances to one another in response to things fairly attractive girl is saying. Also a blog by a friend posted tonight. His interaction with a (drunk, drugged up?) girl and his subsequent analysis about said interaction. Assumptions, crude jokes. Judgment. Pretty wonderful reflection, though, to provide contrast for practice. What of it? Reflection. Is all.

Time. Takes much of it to unlearn things taught by parents. By schools. The media. But unraveling? Absolutely beautiful motions, revolutions, faces and places, send me spinning into next day. Don’t even notice. Best way to pass Time. All we have is It. Technically we created It. Time to ignore It. Time to let It go.

(seemingly)Tangential Sidenote: purchased iPod Touch while back. Best electronic investment in a while. Great for music production (Four Track, Voxie Recorder, etc). Downloaded Gratitude Journal application immediately after purchase. Today’s journal looks like:

Five Things You’re Grateful For

1. Antoinette’s friendship, guidance and wisdom.
2. Michael’s friendship and openness.
3. The music apps I downloaded today.
4. My charging dock received from UPS today.
5. Public transportation.

Seemingly simple, holds much value. Short lists drip with gratitude. Need napkin sometimes when re-read. Tuesday, beautiful, spilling over into am blues of midweek, ambient sounds of relaxation playing in background … from iPod Touch … from speakers of new charging dock.

Thank You, Source -we live in abundance.

"Ask and It Is Given" -Esther and Jerry Hicks

There’s a hookah lounge in downtown San Diego that I frequent quite often. Usually I go with a group of friends and my boyfriend, but recently I’ve been going there alone on weeknights after work to get some writing done. Tonight I had planned to stick with this particular routine, but a slight variation took place, seemingly unexpected at first, but a complete vibrational match for the frequency I was experiencing at the time.

Since I moved back to San Diego for school (about five years ago), I’ve made a handful of friends whom I consider very close, and while I do appreciate all of those faces that I’ve met and grown to love, I still feel that there is indeed room for more. In fact, I believe it would be a better opportunity to expand my feeling of gratitude and love for the friends I have now, hence my intention (set about a week ago) to invite more people into my reality who share similar interests with me and yet challenge me intellectually, spiritually and emotionally; those who can provide contrast to the beliefs that I have currently so that I may better understand the full spectrum of this newfound spiritual path upon which I am endeavoring. Basically, inevitable friends and co-creators who will allow me to see past my own perspective and into the larger consciousness surrounding us all.

With that said …

This evening I went to the hookah lounge with a co-worker after our shift was done. Initially I had my reservations when he asked if I could use some company, seeing as how I had originally planned to get some work done alone. But immediately after that thought crossed my mind I said to myself, “Wait a minute --this is my intention in the process of manifesting. And even if it is just a reflection and not the full desire coming into my reality (more friends, etc), it is an opportunity to be grateful for those who are already in my life now (eg my wonderful co-worker!), opening up the door to more faces and opportunities that will continue to help elicit these feelings of appreciation, gratitude and love.”

As I mentioned before in my last blog I would be sharing the “Ask and It Is Given” cards by Esther and Jerry Hicks in my following blogs. The first card that I pulled from the deck I had pulled during the conversation that my co-worker and I had. It was a very insightful and profound conversation about the nature of his reality, his past, and his present moment awareness (a unique perspective that I have come to believe is the only thing that truly exists in relation to what our consciousness truly is). We talked about the Law of Attraction, manifesting our intentions and believing in abundance. All in all I feel that the words exchanged between the two of us left very deep impressions. I imagined our conversation as a handful of seeds, each so full of beautiful potential, waiting for the right thoughts to guide them to fruition. Toward the end of our conversation I showed him the card I had picked, and it was directly related to what he had been having trouble with in the past:

Every Subject Is Two Subjects: Wanted and Not Wanted.

Every subject is really two subjects: There is that which you desire , and the lack of it. Often--even when you believe you are thinking about something that you desire--you are actually thinking about the exact opposite of what you desire.

We discussed the context of these wonderful words in relation to his life. How do we stay focused on positive things in our reality when (seemingly) the negative things are so prevalent? Among the many things we discussed was the fact that many times in his past he had the tendency of saying “No” to the negative things in his life, giving it recognition, attention, focus. And this is okay to a certain degree, in that in the process of saying “Yes” to our desires we must first recognize the “No,” that which we do not want, in order to arrive at the “Yes,” that which we do want. But constantly and consistently saying “No” to something is the same as saying “Yes.” The Law of Attraction will continually attract that which is like unto itself.

The advice I gave to him was two-part:

1. Gratitude for the Past
Though I don’t necessarily believe that the past exists in the same way that the present moment does, I still find it important to say “Thank You” to all experiences that have led up to this very moment, negative and positive. It’s startling at first to think it important to say “Thank You” to a negative experience, but these experiences, ultimately, are those which you manifested into your reality, whether consciously or not. The Universe is all-inclusive, never excluding anything, and responds in kind to what you give your attention to via the Law of Attraction. You sent your thoughts, the Universe heard, and the Universe delivered. It’s only right to be grateful.

2. Belief in the Present-Moment Awareness
This belief really means allowing oneself to thoroughly live in the moment and to be grateful for it. Gratitude for one's past is necessary to transform this into a belief, and when I was first introduced to this in a podcast by Steve Pavlina, I was indeed taken aback. Is there any way to prove that anything truly exists outside of our conscious, present-moment awareness? Can the past exist, even, without our present-moment awareness rendering it into being? Why don’t we have the same access to the past as we do to the future and vice versa? Without delving too deeply into the philosophy it is nevertheless fascinating to engage my mind with questions such as these, especially if it challenges any current beliefs that I may have.

These past few weeks have been about contemplation and reintroducing myself to Source Energy, letting go of the pinch to the flow of well-being, which constantly moves through us at all times. It has also been about affirmation --I am Source Energy, always have been and always will be, and I am a Creative Being. Lastly, and most importantly, it has been about gratitude, for all the faces orbiting me in this reality and for our shared time to manifest our desires on planet Earth.

Sweet Synchronicity

I’ve been absent from this blog for a significant amount of time, I know, and I do apologize for the brief hiatus. Certain priorities involving my application to a teaching credential program arose within the past few weeks. However those things have been taken care of and I am indeed grateful that you are all still checking-in on this lil’ ol’ blog o’mine!

Lately I've been on this Mind-As-Direct-Reflection-of-the-Universe kick, among other things. In my reality, and I'm certain in countless others, the Law of Attraction seems to function under the assumption that both my mind and the Universe are directly connected, acting as one, my mind being a manifested form (manifested into matter, that is) of the larger consciousness that is the Universe.

A mouthful, indeed, but absolutely fascinating to contemplate.

I’ve always considered the mind to be as infinite as the Universe, and thus as powerful as the Universe, capable of both the most beautiful creations and destructions. Its been proven that the thought processes we engage in everyday are in fact creative, the basis for the Law of Attraction, in that our thoughts create things, namely our reality. Every thought activates some sort of change, acting as the primary catalyst for the changing nature of your specific reality. I find this notion perfectly summed-up in the following phrase:

“That which we project we reflect.”

Recently I’ve been receiving a lot of reflections reminding me to let source energy (or, if your prefer, God/Godhead/the Tao/the unified energy field, etc) flow back into my life.

Yesterday afternoon I was listening to Esther and Jerry Hicks on my iPod, their “Ask and It Is Given” audio book (Part I, I believe), re-familiarizing myself with the Teachings of Abraham and basic principles of manifesting one’s intentions. It felt good to get back to that energy, and right there on the bus I wrote an intention. I affirmed to myself that I am source energy, that I am a creative being, and that my mind and spirituality are indeed the source of my reality, simultaneously telling myself that I will invite all things that resonate with my being, my core. It’s empowering to the degree that I feel positive about what I’m affirming, and when I go about my day with that mentality, resonating with that specific vibration that makes me feel good, the most wonderful synchronicities are reflected back.

As I wrote this intention a very specific image flooded my mind. It was of my co-worker and this one particular night shift when she had brought in Esther and Jerry Hicks’ “Ask and It Is Given” cards, with illustrations and text from their book. It was during the time that I was barely being introduced to the Law of Attraction by my brother. Throughout the shift I kept picking cards out at random, in awe of the absolute sense the words were making. The memory left as quickly as it came. When I finally arrived at work she said, “I brought you a scone upstairs and these.” It was the same deck of cards she had brought in before. She said she hadn’t been able to utilize them as well as she would have liked to so she decided to give them to me. In the end I was grateful that I was able to open myself up to source again, not pinching off its inevitable flow, and almost immediately my intention came into fruition.

In the next few blogs I would like to share these wonderful cards with you and the context of their meaning in my reality, and subsequently your reality, with the hope that our roles as co-creators help us manifest more beauty, love and consciousness in our shared reality.

How to Manifest Your Intentions

Our thoughts are never permanently set on one particular thing. The ability to focus for a prolonged period of time is a very commendable ability that is one of the building blocks to holding an intention and eventually having it manifest.

The fact of the matter is we hardly ever finish a sentence without immediately contradicting ourselves in the same instance -think about the less-than-seconds it takes to complete a sentence, let alone a thought. Some may argue that it’s only human for our fears to interrupt the intentions we may be attempting to set, to think “I would love to make more money but (enter subsequent fear here).” However, if we are constantly saying “Thank you” and remaining forever grateful for the things and people we have already manifested into our reality, it would indeed prove difficult for any fear to break through that barrier of gratitude.

So how exactly do we manifest our intentions if every time we try to hold a thought a wave of negativity overcomes it? One approach that I still find myself doing to this day involves changing the frequency with which my thoughts occur. I know it sounds strange but bear with me.

Let’s refer to the very title of this blog, “The Attitude of Gratitude.” Assuming an attitude of gratitude is a very powerful thing that you can do in manifesting your intentions. Listing the things and people that you’re grateful for helps you in the following ways:

1. Focus

If you find that listing things and people for whom you are grateful is a daunting mental task, then feel free to do so on paper. Taking the time to go through our inventory of faces, places, and things and saying thank you to each and everyone one helps our mind tune into the frequency of gratitude and love. Attaining this focus prolongs our attention to this positive frequency.

2. Shift Frequencies

No matter what you may be feeling at any given time it is always possible to shift your frequency by changing the content of your thoughts -if you are willing to do so. While still in college I would find myself counting backwards from ten when I would encounter a stressful situation (usually a jam-packed cumulative final exam that required lots of study preparation and review). Breathing and counting allowed me to shift my frequency level from highly stressed to relaxed and focused. The same mechanism works for your gratitude list.

3. Provides Foundation for Intentions

Once you’ve felt a significant change in your frequency, in how you feel at the end of your Thank You’s, your intentions will no longer be resting upon a foundation which contradicts the very thing you are attempting to manifest. As they say in the film “The Secret,” you become a vibrational match for the intentions you are trying to manifest.

If any of you have seen the film “The Secret,” you know of the power that the words “Thank You” can evoke. In my experience, before I can even begin setting any intentions with the hope that they manifest, I tune into a very specific frequency of thoughts -this frequency, heard, read and translated by the Universe, can be happiness, love, or gratitude, frequencies that tend to make you feel good. When I think of these frequencies I usually say “Thank You” for the things and the people that help me maintain these emotions. With this working as a foundation for the intentions I wish to manifest the Universe listens and delivers that which I humbly ask for.

The Law of Attraction is always working, which is why you have manifested the words you have just read. I am so very grateful we got to meet again, so stay tuned (into the frequency of gratitude) and remember to say “thank you!”

Thank you!

either or neither and both

At 3:10 a.m. I usually find that sleep does not come so easily. The pattern has been this way for quite some time now, since my uncle passed away, to be more exact. I don't necessarily attribute this newly acquired sleeping pattern to that fact, though lately it has been a steady measurement of time for it.

While my brother and I did begin certain practices involving the Law of Attraction prior to our uncle's passing and even during it, the key principle of gratitude tsunamied its way into my life the night before his funeral, the night I wrote his eulogy.

The saying goes that one doesn't really appreciate the things s/he may have until it's finally gone, but sometimes it takes a good Taoist approach to stumble upon appreciation, in that we find the truest form of something, its purest form, only when we discover its exact opposite -presence/absence, life/death, light/dark. While writing about an uncle who no longer was in physical form sharing solid ground with me, I found an overwhelming and immeasurable gratitude fueling the movements of my pen.

I can say that thanking him, internally, spiritually, for being such an important figure in my life, solidifies his presence in my mind despite the fact that he is physically gone. My thanks were affirmation, my own version of mourning that required no regrets, no guilt, and definitely no sorrow rooted in selfishness.

Sometimes I wonder where his consciousness went, where it is. It's a subtle thought that tends to creep into my never-ending internal dialogue, but I'm getting better in reminding myself that it never really left, nor did it ever come, but just always was. And that his physical manifestation -his face, his eyes that remind me of my own and of my mother's- was only a momentary entity of the larger consciousness that reached for a new and unique experience here on Earth.

Grateful to Meet You!

I used to be a Catholic. I feared God, I felt guilt, and I was always asking for absolution for my sins. I wasn’t devout, mind you, but being born into a Filipino family left me little choice growing up. It has been a little over two years now since I was first introduced by my brother to the Law of Attraction. Since then I have managed to integrate and implement some of the most basic principles that I’ve come to understand, such as always maintaining an attitude of gratitude. While I am grateful for the things that Christianity has taught me, that period of my life has come to an end. Institutionalized religion as a whole just isn’t for me.

Even now in conversations with my aunts (who are devout Catholics) I find myself explaining my spirituality by telling them that I have replaced the word “God” with the word “Universe” –an entity not completely known, vast, infinite, and definitely powerful. Some have used the Universe as a metaphor for our minds, our consciousness, but I find it more empowering to directly connect the two, to say that our minds are indeed a reflection of the Universe and vice versa. We reflect that which we project, precisely.

In my experience, my intentions always seem to manifest quicker when I remind myself of the things for which I am most grateful. It seems that when the Universe picks up on that specific frequency it tends to manifest more things into your life that resonate with it -gratitude, appreciation, love, thus leading your intentions to fruition. It’s just a matter of tuning in, so to speak. I have read enough articles, seen enough videos, and talked to enough spiritually-minded souls to get myself to where I am today –grateful for how spiritually aware I have become and definitely grateful at my newfound ability to humble myself to the greater Universe at hand.

So stayed tuned –the Universe wanted us to encounter one another and I am definitely grateful for it!