PLEASE NOTE THAT I AM NO LONGER POSTING ON THIS BLOG.
IF YOU'D LIKE TO FOLLOW MY ANTICS, VISIT MY NEW BLOG
BY CLICKING ON THE LINK BELOW . . .

PRIESTESS OF THE LIGHT

Farewell, Adieu until we meet again . . .

I've been feeling restless lately. Changes are happening all around and within me. My spiritual focus has shifted and I no longer feel that this blog supports the new paradigm that I'm experiencing. Somehow it feels 'limiting'

I'm like a chameleon, changing to suit my environment. In this case it's my internal environment. I need to somehow express the 'bigness' that is within me. And so I'm leaving this blog and making a new beginning. And I hope you'll follow me over to the new blog . . . if you're so inclined.

My new blog name is 'Priestess of the Light' and I've begun by telling a story of how the blog came into being . . .

"Hello, Merry Meet, and Welcome to my blog. I'm going to start off by telling you a story and how I came upon the name for this new blog of mine . . ."

And so I want to thank you, dear reader and friends, for following this blog and all my ramblings and I hope to see you at the new digs!

What's up with Playlist?

What's up with Playlist? Did they sell out or something? I see that my playlist is no longer available without having to leave this page and go to their site. Bummer. Someone please tell me I'm wrong and that there's a way to link my playlist to my blog. I'll keep working on it, but I have to be honest . . . being on the internet is getting more and more complicated every day. It seems you can't turn your head for one second and they're changing things. I was happy and content with the old blogger, the old playlist, et cetera. Maybe I'm just getting 'old' . . . sigh . . . Oh, and did I mention playlist is now full of commercials? Heavy sigh . . .

Sedona on My Mind

I can't get Sedona off my mind. The red rocks. The energy that's palpable in the blood. The rhythym of life. And how time seems to stand still there. Husband and animals nothwithstanding, I believe I would have stayed there in my little hotel/apartment. A shift has occurred knocking my paradigm off kilter. I'm different somehow and I feel that changes are imminent. I'm just not sure how those changes are going to manifest. For now, I'll try to relax and allow the flow of the Universe to guide me.

I took a Karuna Reiki® class with Laurelle and Michael at Peace Place. It was a wonderful class and I learned so much. Karuna Reiki® is different from Usui Reiki in that is goes much deeper, to the soul, and it is loving and compassionate while healing at this deeper level. On Sunday night, after the last day of class, I had a healing crisis. It felt as if my Solar Plexus was going to explode out of my body and envelope me in a cloud of dust. And had I known I was going to get that sick, I would not have had pizza for dinner . . . I should have listened to my intuition when it said, "eat something light for supper!".

I met a wonderful new friend and as serendipity would have it she was in the room below me at the hotel. We shared early morning hikes, lunches and dinners together. And we talked. She called us soul sisters and bought me a little Rose Quartz angel. Little did she know that she was my angel.

I met a friend on Monday who I've known for several years, but never had the chance to meet in person. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling very well, so we had a light lunch and visited and then I made my excuses and went back to my hotel room to lie down. I'm grateful for comfy couches and for the fact that she had brought her daughter along to keep her company.

On Tuesday, I spent the day with Mark and Michael from Mystical Tours. We hiked up one of the mountains and did some meditation and chakra clearing. It was spectacular. Then we split into smaller groups. Another lady and myself went with Michael to Cathedral Rock and hiked down into a canyon with a lovely stream. We put our feet in the water and then layed out in the sun. Michael took us through a chakra clearing exercise and then another exercise to work on some inner things. One of the things I wanted to work on was my inner child and bringing more joy into my life. Just as I layed down with that intention a hummingbird flew right over top of me from my crown to my feet and flew up and into the trees in front of me. I had chills as Michael told me that hummingbirds represent joy and that joy was there for me.

On Wednesday it was time for me to return home. Somewhat reluctantly I packed my suitcase and gathered myself together for the trip home. The two hour drive from Sedona to Phoenix went smoothly, the scenery awe-inspiring. The three hour flight from Phoenix to Cinncinati went without a hitch and it flew by (pardon the pun!). The only glitch in the whole trip was a two hour delay in Cinncinati where the flight attendant was delayed in Orlando. I took the opportunity to send Reiki to everyone waiting and to one gentleman in particular who seemed quite agitated by the whole thing. Once the flight attendant was on board we were on our way and the hour flight to Madison was smooth and uneventful.

I wish I could say I'm happy to be home. Don't get me wrong . . . I'm grateful for my husband, my pets and my home. But something is different. I'm different. Who knows what the future holds and all I can do is trust in the Universe to put me in the right place at the right time for the right purpose. Isn't that all anybody can do? And so I wait . . .

Eeegads . . . I haven't been on blogger for awhile and wouldn't you know it . . . they changed the way things are set up.  What was wrong with the way it was . . . sigh . . . another learning curve.

I'm heading off to Sedona on Thursday and can't wait to share my experience with you. I'll be taking a Karuna Reiki class for three days, then one day shared with a friend, one day of a guided tour of the vortex sites and then back home again. I'm looking forward to the time away, although I'll miss my hubby and our furred and feathered babies. I must admit I'm a little trepidatious leaving 'him' with 'them' (let's face it - no one can take care of the kiddies or critters like their mommy can). As long as everyone is alive and well when I return home I'll be grateful for that.

I've been a busy bee in the yard and garden. Things are really starting to shape up and flowers are blooming. I have a few flower beds that still need to be weeded, trimmed and mulched, but the bulk of the work has been done. I'm hoping to plant some more flowers in my moon garden after my return along with a May Day tree that we'll be planting in Shelby's honor . . . sigh . . . Here are a few pictures of the garden . . . hope you enjoy!

My New Aquarium

Well, I hadn't intended on getting a 20 gallon aquarium, but when Brian said it's only a few dollars more to get a 20 gallon from a 10 gallon, I thought 'why not?'. And so we came home with a 20 gallon aquarium for my Betta fish 'Reiki', three glolite tetras and two emerald green corydora (catfish).

After a few days, however, I decided to move Reiki back into his bowl because the tetras were nipping pretty fiercely at his tail. He seems happier back in his bowl and is blowing bubble nests (apparently a sign that they're happy).

So, with Reiki back in his bowl, I decided to add more fish to my aquarium. I added two more glolite tetras. After a week I added two gourami. Unfortunatley, they were fighting (they are related to Betta fish) and so I returned one of them and came home with three serpae tetra. I also added one more corydora as they like to flock together in larger groups.

So, here I am thinking everything is okay, but such is not the case! The serpae's are nipping at the gourami, so I'm going to buy three more serpae's and see if that solves the problem. Apparently, they like to be in schools so I'm hoping that with the bigger school, they'll leave the poor gourami alone. He's not in dire straights or anything, but I think he'd be happier if he was left alone.

So that's the beginning of aquarium life for me. I do enjoy sitting and watching the fish swim about. There's something peaceful and calming about the aquarium . . . and it draws me in . . . every time.

Ostara

Ostara came and went in the blink of an eye! As happens, life has been busy with all its ups and downs and I'm finally finding some time to get to some of the things that have been on my to-do list. Like post Ostara pictures!.

Here are some pictures of my Ostara altar for this year. I left up most of what I had for Imbolc and added a few items like the eggs I had dyed last year. I changed out the crystals adding some pretty ones that I thought represented Ostara.

If you follow my blog you'll know that last year Mary spoke to me saying she wanted to be on my Imbolc altar and so she is here and will stay on the altar through the end of May. As May is the month of Mary, I'll change the altar to reflect this special month.

I hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Ostara!

Happy April Fool's Day!

There are many theories surrounding the origin of April Fool's day including the Roman winter festival of Saturnalia; the Festus Fatuorum (the Feast of Fools) which evolved out of the Saturnalia; British folklore of the town of Gotham who in order to avoid losing their main road set about making fools of themselves; and according to anthropologists and cultural historians, April Fool's Day traces its roots back to a festival marking the Vernal Equinox or Springtime.

However, the most widespread theory about the origin of April Fool's Day dates back to 1582 when King Charles IX of France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar so the year would begin on January 1st rather than the traditional April 1st.

This decision caused a lot of disagreement and controversy. Although the staunchest and most stubborn continued to celebrate the new year on April 1st, others with more modern views started to perform tricks and pranks to bolster those in the opposing camp. Among the latter were several village curés who did not approve of this manner of manipulating the calendar. Consequently, as around this date the fishing season was closed for spawning, some people made a habit of keeping the last fish they had caught and let it rot. Then, on the sly, they placed it on the doormat of the presbytery.

Others believed that the days surrounding the first of April marked the end of Lent when it was customary to give sweets to those they liked, while to the others they gave a fish! Children got wrapped up in the game and made imitation fish which they gave to their friends and relatives as jokes.

Some like to think of April 1st as an important holiday for breaking up the monotony of a long winter and its accompanying depression. It’s a day for jokes and pranks with laughter guaranteed. In this context, television and other local media broadcast several hoaxes - France sold the islands of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon to Canada in exchange for the province of Newfoundland; the Confederation Bridge collapsed; Ontario was handed over to the United States; the St Lawrence River would soon run dry, and so on.

I personally like to believe the legend that says a girl born on April 1st will become a quiet and peaceful woman. Her calmness and silence, following the example of a fish, will be widely acknowledged and appreciated, because unlike other women, she will know how to keep a secret . . .

(Adapted from an article by Myriam Fontaine)

Something's Fishy

I went into the pet store yesterday to buy dog food and Bijou treats and left with a Betta fish! I've been thinking about it for awhile and thought it would be nice to have some company in my Reiki studio.

I love fish! They're so mezmerizing, calming and relaxing. I named him 'Reiki' . . . go figure! He is the prettiest blue with a hint of green. Call me crazy, but when I talk to him he comes right to the front of the bowl and looks at me. I swear he knows exactly what I'm saying . . . who better to tell your deepest, darkest secrets to?

Breakdown . . .

Bowl $20
Decorations $13
Food $6
Water Conditioner $5
Betta Fish $4

Watching 'Reiki' swim around in the bowl . . . priceless!