The rains have cleared for the time being, and we’re left with a crisp, blue sky and billowy white clouds. Meadow and I went for a walk the other day and were greeted by the first signs of spring. What magnificence there is in nature! Reaching toward the sun, a young peony made its first appearance at Summerhill Ranch and bright green shoots were visible in all directions.

As January draws to a close, I’m thinking about the seeds that we planted at the start of 2010 and whose bounty we will reap in the months and years ahead. What are your goals for this year? What have you resolved to do? Are you taking action? Just as seeds in the garden need tending, so do our goals and resolutions. Love, nurturing, and nourishment are necessary to grow tall and strong. As you look back on the past month, be gentle with yourself. Even with baby steps, eventually you reach your destination.

Movement is important to me. When I dance and move my body I feel both closer to God and more grounded to the earth.

One of my goals for the year is to dance more. In the past I have tried joining the gym and doing exercise regimes, but usually I find a way to keep from going: an urgent phone call, a book deadline, projects around the house…you know the story. But dancing and movement are activities that can be done at home, at the office, or even in the car and make me feel alive and full of vitality.

Last week I invited friends on Facebook to join me in a week of dancing. I was embarrassed to admit that some days work and other commitments got in the way, cutting short my 30 minutes of dancing with abandon. One afternoon, while helping a sick friend with her laundry, I turned on loud and fast music and folded the clothes to the beat. I ended up counting this as my dancing for the day but felt a bit guilty about it. But then I realized…rather than chastising myself for not “dancing” why can’t I dance my way to health and wellbeing while folding laundry?! While it’s not a substitute for all-out dancing or cardio exercise, it is a great way to make chores and daily activities fun and spirit-filled

My challenge to you: spend the next week finding joy in even the most mundane tasks. Have you ever heard a song on the radio of your car that makes you want to burst with enthusiasm and you can’t help but sing along at the top of your lungs? Go for it! Who cares who’s looking! Sing with abandon. I promise the traffic jam will seem much less onerous. While you’re doing the dishes try swaying your hips and wiggling your shoulders. The dishes are a lot more fun this way and you’re turning everyday activities into a joyful and energy-filled experience. How about that vacuum? Imagine it’s a dance partner and go crazy with glee as you eradicate the dust from your floors. When you’re at the office, try tapping your foot to the same cadence as your fingers typing on the keyboard. What song do you hear in your head? Is it fast? Is it slow? What’s the singer’s voice like? Joy and movement is everywhere. Here’s to dancing our way to health and vitality and having loads of fun along the way!!!

Glorious sunrise at Summerhill Ranch

What a storm we are having! There are trees down and it looks like creeks have formed on our land. David, my husband, was covered head-to-toe in mud as he shoveled for hours to divert cascading water so one of our storage buildings didn’t wash away. Yesterday our electricity was out…It really made me realize how dependent we are on electricity.

This is my first blog posting and for some reason it feels like I’m entering a whole new universe. I’m a little excited and a little nervous.  It feels like the first time I saw a television. (It’s hard to believe, but I can remember when the first televisions came out.) My dad brought one home and turned it on. It was like there was the universe inside of that little box. I kept walking around and around the television trying to get the little people to come out and play with me.

Since then there have been so many technological advances … I always feel like I’m the last kid on the block to get on the technological thrill ride. But here it is, my first blog. I’m entering into another universe.  It’s here that I will connect , make friends, and share my heart  with you . . .  all while sitting here in my office looking at my wonderful lemon tree (which is currently pregnant with so many bright yellow lemons) and watching the deer feeding on the new grass on the hillside.

I don’t think I’ll be able to personally chat with each person here for awhile . . I can’t keep up with my e-mail at this point, but I will definitely read every post and hold you in my heart as I do so.  

Well, the adventure begins!!

Sparkling Love and Shimmering Blessings!!

Denise

Lemons outside my window

Greetings and Welcome to my Mumblings and Musings!!!

Welcome to my newsletter called “Mumblings and Musings” It’s just some of the observations I have about life here at Summerhill Ranch, our home on the Central Coast of California. I’m delighted that you are here. Thank you for joining me.

God is Everywhere … Even in Hospitals

For four days, last week, I laid on my daughters couch in her small bungalow in Santa Monica . I had re-injured a herniated disc in my back and I couldn’t walk. I held my right leg high at a 90-degree angle above my body. It was the only position that seemed to alleviate some of the pain. I even slept with my leg straight up, propped against a wall. I tried everything to diminish the pain, but nothing seemed to work.

I called upon my angels. They must have been busy else where as they didn’t answer (or at least not in the way I wanted them.) I beckoned my guides and ancestors, to no avail. I tried self-hypnosis. Nothing. I imagined going inside my body and talking to cells and asking for their support. They were happy to hear from me, but the pain continued.

I pleaded with God. (I’m embarrassed to say I even tried bargaining with God, but even with my best negotiating skills, the pain continued.) My daughter suggested surrendering to the pain and to the will of the Creator. This seemed like a great idea, so all through one night I repeated over and over, “I surrender to this pain. I surrender to the will of God.” The next morning the pain was still there. (I know surrender has to be unconditional but I had actually hoped that “surrendering” meant that God would do what I wanted, even though I know that it doesn’t work that way.)

I then tried looking for the messages and trying to find the lessons in my situation. Often when you discover what the message is, then the disease or symptoms will dissolve. Well, I found lots of meanings and learned lots of lessons, but still the pain prevailed.

Finally, Meadow, my daughter, said, “Mom. You can’t spend the rest of your life on my couch with your leg in the air. I’m taking you to the hospital.”

I thought, “ But I like your couch .” I didn’t say this out loud, but I really didn’t want to see a doctor. (My belief in natural medicine is so strong that I only go to a doctor as a very last resort.) My daughter prevailed, however, and I found myself in a small room at the emergency center. As I laid on the bed (with my leg still sticking straight up in the air) I realized that I needed to change my mind-set about doctors and hospitals, so I kept repeating to myself “God is everywhere…even in hospitals.”

About the tenth time I said this, a languid, mixed breed Labrador shuffled into the room. He put his big paws up on the bed, and stared at me with his large, shiny black eyes, as if to say, “Yup! God is everywhere…even in hospitals.” Holding the leash was Dennis, his owner, who explained that Riley was an Emergency Center dog. He said patients experienced less trauma when they had a dog to pet.

As this sweet dog nuzzled my hand, I relaxed and started crying, realizing that even if I don’t know what the divine plan is, there is always a plan . . this sweet dog seemed to affirm to me thatindeed God is everywhere, even in hospitals.

Just before I left the emergency room, the doctor asked me how bad the pain was. I told him that trying to walk was on par with the pain of childbirth, but if there was a fire I could still run. Little did I know how true that statement would be.

God is Everywhere . . . Even Amidst Explosions and Fire

I made my way back home . . . and yesterday I went from my daughter’s couch to our couch here at Summerhill Ranch. (I was still keeping my leg hovering straight up above me.)

Suddenly a loud explosion seemed to rock the house. I jumped up off the couch as David screamed through the window. “Call 911!”

I flew to the phone, and dialed as David yelled that the explosion had come from our neighbors across the road. Looking our the window, I could see flames soaring 25 feet into the air and catching big pine trees on fire. I gave the information to the operator. All thought of back pain disappeared as I raced to make sure that our neighbors were okay. They were gone, but their dogs were in the house and sheep in the corral. After helping to get the animals out, we later stood with our neighbors, (when they showed up) and solemnly watched most of their home burn to the ground.

In that moment, all the differences between us disappeared. (Our neighbors listen to Rush Limbaugh, we listen to Amy Goodman; she wears high heels, I wear rubber flip flops; he wears suits, David wears frayed jeans; they like to go to formal wine makers dinners, we just like to drink wine.) Yet as we all watched the fire in disbelief, there was a common bound of humanity. We all put our arms around each other and just held each other in sadness.

Later that night, they came over for dinner—for the first time ever— and they talked about what a miracle it was that we had been able to report it so quickly. They repeatedly said what a miracle it had been that no one was hurt and how grateful they were that all their animals were all right. (There is extreme fire hazard right now in our area in California . We were all lucky. The fire could’ve spread to the entire canyon.) We found ourselves sharing all the little miracles that had happened during the day … and at one point my neighbor said, “You know . . . God is everywhere.” She couldn’t have said it better.

Even if I don’t know why things happen the way they do, I believe with my entire reason that God is everywhere and that there is a reason for everything… even if we don’t know what that reason is.

With all my love,

Mumblings and Musings – August Edition

Greetings and Welcome to my Mumblings and Musings!!!

I hope that your life is bubbling with joy and meaningful connections with others!

If you’ve been following my musings over the years, I’m grateful for your presence in my life. If this is the first time you’re joining me: Welcome Aboard! I’m glad to share this time with you. I hope that you enjoy my newsletters. My “Mumblings and Musings” are just that . . . my periodic mumblings and musings about life on Summerhill Ranch here in the Central Coast of California and about life in general. It’s also how I let you know about my upcoming courses and my newly released books. I also like to use this as a forum to recommend fabulous products that I encounter in my travels that I think you might enjoy.

FIRE!

The smoke has finally cleared but over the last couple of months, it has felt like California was on fire. Even though we were about half-an-hour drive from one of the big fires—and in no real danger—on a couple of nights the house filled with so much smoke that we were sure that the fire was surging toward our home. One night, I slept with a wet washcloth over my nose and hung wet towels over the birdcages so we wouldn’t be inhaling so much smoke.

The fire-fighting planes are stationed at a small airport not far from us, so every day we watched these valiant planes fly over the ranch on the way to the fires. As they fly over, they must look down at me and think, There’s that crazy lady again, because I hold my arms to the skies and send them blessings and prayers. I hold those pilots in holy reverence; to me they are heroes.

A few years ago, our neighbor’s land caught fire. After we raced to report the fire, we anxiously watched from our vantage point of the tall hill on our land, as the flames leaped from the underbrush and flared up to the tops of trees. It was terrifying to watch, especially as our home was the closest to the fire. When the fire-fighting planes arrived, we literally jumped up and down and whooped with relief. What skill, confidence (and luck) these pilots possess. We watched as one plane after another flew blind into the smoke and then released fire retardant. Sometimes they flew only a few feet above the ground.

REGENERATION

I’ve been thinking about fire because of what I recently witnessed in Mexico. (I have just returned to the United States today, so my memories are still fresh with me.) During my time in that wonderful country, I had the opportunity to hike in a mountainous area that was completely devastated by fire only last October. Evidently the fire was so high that it jumped ravines and small canyons. At the base of one of the mountains, I saw some of the destroyed homes, and they looked as though they had been melted and scorched from the inside out. Even the glass from the windows was melted into oddly shaped forms. And these homes were made of tile, brick and adobe.

The thing that was amazing, however, was how quickly the mountains and the land had regenerated. Everything was so green and vibrant. And even though the trunks of the big oak trees were charred black, there were large canopies of new growth overhead. Everywhere that smaller trees had burned to the earth, there was new growth, some of it was over 5 feet tall. (How does a tree grow five feet high in nine months?) The regeneration was so profound that if I didn’t know about the fire, I would have thought that it had occurred 10 or 15 years in the past, rather than last October.

AUSCHWITZ AND GREEN FROGS

Seeing how rapidly the land had renewed itself, made me think of a remarkable experience a friend had a few years ago. My friend, Jaap, grew up in Amsterdam and during the Nazi regime his mother had been taken to Auschwitz where she was eventually gassed. The horror of this lived with him for his entire life…until, as a grown man in his 60’s, he visited Auschwitz to pay homage to his beloved mother. The visit transformed him. He told me that the thing that touched him to his core was seeing—in that place of utter desolation and destruction—a kind of regeneration that had occurred there. He saw beautiful grasses growing along the small channels of water (where the dead had once been piled). As he looked at the water, he could see soft, billowy clouds reflected on the surface that was only broken by the small green frogs that gleefully leaped into the water at his approach. He said that he gained a hope for the world there. He realized that healing and regeneration is always possible, no mater what has happened.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

There are times when I bemoan what is happening to our planet’s environment because of the shortsighted myopia of our modern life. There are times when I wish native people’s wisdom and respect for the land prevailed; it seems sometimes that the future for our children is bleak. However, seeing the scattering of wildflowers and the profound rejuvenation of the land in Mexico—and remembering what Jaap had told me about Auschwitz— gives me hope for the future. I know that no matter what internal “fires” we have weathered in our lives, we have the ability to heal and thrive. Our spirit and our life can always regenerate. I believe that no matter what challenges we face both personally and globally, that renewal is always possible. Indeed, hope springs eternal.
Thank you for listening to my musings.

With immense LOVE and JOY!!,