T'is the Season

Spring is in the air.  Well, it's not really. The temperatures are still way below what is considered to be seasonal and I hear there is a little more snow in the forecast for this week.  And even though the multitude of spring bulbs that I planted last fall, and am super excited to see poke through the ground, are still very much in their slumbering state, I say

"Spring is in the Air"

I always look forward to the smells of spring, the warmer temperatures that require fewer than 4 layers of warm clothing and the relaxed pace at which we all walk from the place to place.


T'is the that all sleepy things come back to life.  (I get excited I know. This is my favourite season) T'is also the season of contagions.  I have been living with the annoyance of a head cold for just over a week now.  We have all "caught" things from other people.  Most of the time when we talk about catching something from someone we are talking about a runny nose or the flu.  


There are many things being passed around the world that you would do well to guard yourself against.  But there are also many things that you would do well to catch, and spread.




Things That Are Contagious

• Cold/Flu/Illness
• Applause
• Fashion Trends (some good, others.... well, it's personal I guess) 
• Gossip
• Ideas/ Language (for example many marketing slogans)
• Yawns (even reading the word yawn makes me need to yawn)  
• Smiles
• Attitudes

That last one is (perhaps obviously) the one I consciously think about most because energy attracts to it it's prefect match.  That is Universal Law. 

Energy attracts to it it's prefect match  

That is Universal Law 

We have all had "one of those days".  A day where things just seem to be bumping along in a manner that makes us want to jump back into bed, hide under the covers and wait for it all to be over. When it's a negative emotion, perhaps a "drip toothpaste down your clean blouse, burn your toast, spill the sugar, tear your coat in the parking lot" kind of day, we often have a tougher time finding conversations about wonderful and uplifting things. That is because our energy bringing back to us it's perfect energetic match. (more crappy stuff to go wrong). 

It can be hard to buck a current like that when there has been a momentum building all morning.


Similarly, it can be fun when you're day rolls in the direction of all that is awesome. When you wake up feeling rested, when your hair does that thing without any effort, when your coffee tastes exactly perfect, when you feel good in your clothes as you step out into the sunshine. The day when traffic signals change to suit your every move, when the radio seems to be playing your own personal favourites play list, when your co-workers laugh at your quick whited joke, and then as if top it all off - the cafeteria is serving the lunch that you love. Today, the world belongs to you! 

Those days it seems that all you find are conversations that feel good. Anything that feel any less seems to either miss you, or you find yourself easily walking right on by. Nothing is gonna bring you down today!

All that good flows to you when you're in a good energetic space for the same reasons the less good finds you on those "other" days.  It's not chance or luck it's energy. And like any other contagion it can be spread and shared with those in your space.

It's Not Chance or Luck,

 It's Energy

If you are walking around with a strong immune system you are less susceptible to catching anyone's cold. That doesn't mean you go out of your way to share a close space with someone who is inadvertently sharing what you don't want.   


Likewise, if you are standing firmly in your energetic space you are less susceptible to catching anyone's negativity. And that doesn't mean you should go out of your way to share a close space with someone who is inadvertently sharing what you don't want.   


What that does mean is that when you are not steadfast in your energy you can be swayed by others, and that you can sway another who themselves is not standing firm.  


Look around. Who are you sharing close energetic space with??  Your friends?? Your co-workers?? Your spouse?? What energies are you inadvertently sharing with each other??  


Good news is you absolutely can take an active role in deciding how you will be influenced. Perhaps there is someone who has the energy that you want to build on in your life. Find a friend or a group that of people that have the life that you want for yourself and spend some time letting them "infect" you. 


Taking an active role can also mean plugging any leaks. Maybe there is someone who is swaying you in ways that are less than what you desire.  That can be a tough one. It can be tough to cut those people out of our lives. Especially when they are people whom we really love. I will leave that one up to you for now (We can explore that in more detail another week), but I recommend plugging as many leaks as you can.  


Over to you

I'd love to hear about who's energy is influencing you??  And what are you doing with your contagious energy?? Are you sharing an infectious smile or a gloomy grump??  


Have you made new friends with someone because you felt that they helped to push you towards what it is that you truly desire??  Or have you ever had to cut out someone whom you love because they were perhaps holding you back??  





Do feel welcome and encourage to use the comment section below to share you thoughts. 

And then come find me on Facebook, I absolutely love meeting new friends and like minded souls  

If you feel good about what you just read I would love for you to choose your favourite social media icon and share. 

Much love & a warm smile,

Kate

Let's Play "What's In My Bag?"

Let's play game.  It's a working title, but for now I'm calling it "What's in my bag?".

Before we do that think for a moment about a time when you felt someone had just acted in a way that was uncalled for, out of line, or inappropriate.  Maybe you passed judgement or maybe you were open minded enough to realize that that wasn't really about you and that that other person was perhaps dealing with a bigger something, or heavier somethings. Maybe you understood that he wasn't feeling well, or that she was having an especially tough day and you would let it go.  Nice of you to do. Forgiveness will likely have felt freeing for you.


It's much easier to see the (over) reaction in another person than it is to see it in ourselves. When we are close to the situation we are a bit like a camera set to take a photo of something in the distance while finding an object up close in the foreground to be in our field of view. We may think we can see it clearly but often our perspective is "off", blurring the lines we imagine to be clear. 

Our life experiences shape our perspectives and our opinions and form our camera lens. Many of those experiences we carry with us through life.  Likes & dislikes, opinions & beliefs can become so familiar that they almost resemble personal law at times. 

We begin to see the world around us through a very specific 

set of self created lenses. 

We react and respond in ways that feel right to us based on our own past learning. It's a really a very normal and natural process for all of us.


In some situation those reactions or instincts may have even been what have kept us safe. (That is very likely for past generations whose survival may have been closely linked to instincts and past learning) But for many of us, we have gone beyond that safe space and into a stagnant place.  A place where we are now continually doing, thinking, believing exactly as we have in the past. The result? Same as always. Frankly it's becoming frustrating.


For many years I lived a life where I longed to move forward. 


I want to have more, to feel more, and to experience more, but I was unwilling to put in the effort to expand my daily routines and do things differently.  



At that time I would have called myself open minded. Yet I read the same books and magazines I always had, I watched the same TV programs, I hung out with the same people and I moved through my week in the same way. 


I wasn't doing a thing to bring to myself anything that new to have, experience or feel. It was a merry go round I was becoming less and less fond of.







And so I began to play (though I didn't realize it at the time) "What's in my bag?"  It was my playful way of examining my baggage (we all collect our own baggage along our way) 

First I had to start by even admitting to myself that I was carrying baggage.  I started with seeing my bags not as heavy black luggage weighing me down, but as a collection that when put together, told the story of where I had been thus far.



We all have our own story, our collection. If we have experienced life we have picked up "things" along the way. 

I have learned to cook a few good meals. To drive a car in the busy city. To swim. To knit. To keep my plants alive. Those belong in my "bag 'o skills".  



But the bag I was struggling with was the one that held all of my beliefs and my emotional understandings.  Some of those I hadn't been comfortable examining, and so instead of deciding what I would carry and what I would not, I packed them all in and labelled it "To be dealt with at some later date. Maybe."  


My collection at that point was eclectic, and it was heavy.


Then life brought me a big emotional break up.  I really didn't think I would ever recover. Figuring this out and moving beyond was not something that I could pull from my "bag o' skills".  

I was hard on myself. My self worth had been flushed. I was convinced that I was never going to amount to anything anyone would love.  I had just done everything right and it STILL blew up in my face.

What beliefs / understandings had I packed into my bags?? 

Where did they come from and were they actually valid??  

There are journals full of my scribbled thoughts as I explored what was weighing me down. I knew that I wanted something different to happen.  I knew that I needed to figure out how to change some habits of thought and reaction.  I had no idea how to do that. 


I have learned SO MUCH about myself.  I am happy and I am comfortable with sharing my story with others.  I would love love love it if my story and what I learned worked for me were to help even one person to get to their good stuff in a more direct route than I got to mine. 



And so I ask you,  

"What's in your bag?"  

What are you carrying that you want to keep and what are you carrying that may be weighing you down?? 


The exploration process is on-going (though it does get easier as you get the hang of it) and it is certainly not without some unease. But in my humble opinion, what you stand to gain is well worth your effort to unpack and understand.  




Over to you

Have you explored your collection of sassy yet personal luggage??  How did / do you unpack and examine what you're carrying??  If you have a tip or a trick to help any of the rest of us to pack only what we need, please feel free to use the comment section to tell your story.