Insights – Melannie Thomas

Archive for the ‘Health & Healing’ Category

Savoring a mug of cinnamon laced hot tea, I realized how comforting and satisfying is a good cup of tea.

My beloved Grandmother made the best iced tea in the world.  But like her Southern Fried Chicken and Cornbread stuffing, try as I might, my tea just does not hit her mark. But that does not stop me from enjoying the rich pleasures of tea.

Tea has a long history.  Perhaps dating as far back as 1000 BC in China. Tea is an essential part of Chinese medicine,  and has many contemporary applications for healing.  And, it would be an oversight not to mention the ramifications of The Boston Tea Party spilling over into contemporary politics.  However, my focus is  enjoyment of tea.

Tea ceremonies thrive in almost all cultures of the world; Britain and Japan being most notable.  If you have never had the pleasure of experiencing High Tea, you are missing out on a memorable event.   Several first class hotels throughout the world offer High Tea and traditional Japanese Tea Ceremonies.  For example, the Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans serves an authentic English High Tea.  They also offer themed Teas; The Princess Tea for young girls and The Alice in Wonderland Tea.  And, at the Kitano in New York,  you can arrange a Japanese Traditional Tea Gathering Ceremony.

I am happy to have found a Jasmine tea like one from my youth.  I love Rooibos and Blackberry.  In summer,  Hibiscus and Mint over ice with a squeeze of Meyer Lemon is so refreshing.  And watching Numi tea blossom in clear glass pots is simply downright cool.

Won’t you join me?  Any season is a good season for tea.

We live in tumultuous times.  Thursday we celebrate our national day of Thanksgiving; and identifying what we are thankful for can be challenging.  

Amidst the hustle and bustle of this week, I invite you to take a few moments to  give thanks for our freedoms;  for the air we breathe;  for  hot, potable water that is accessible by a turn of the tap…you get the idea.  Being thankful for what we take for granted.

And there’s  the giving part of Thanksgiving.  Giving to a food bank, a homeless shelter, taking food to an elderly neighbor, volunteering time  with one of the many helping organizations in your area, all  great ways of caring and sharing…of giving. Remember our troops on active duty throughout the world and their families.

And, whatever your belief system, give thanks to the unseen Spirit of the Divine Provider.

Wishing you all a very peace filled Thanksgiving!

My first choice for Word of the Week was ‘gift’.  But as I reflected on the many gifts that pour into my life these days, blessing seemed the more appropriate word.

‘A thing conducive to happiness…’ is the definition I find most suitable for this moment.   My new home and new car (new to me) are dramatic examples of  blessing.  Without  loving, generous giving, I would not, could not,  afford these things conducive to my happiness.  This extends to the intangible as well, including the rich, abundant blessings from my garden of family, friends and clients.

I have written here before about acceptance.  I am joyfully filled  by  these expressions of care and support;  and very  grateful that I am able to allow myself to receive these blessings.

A fountain of gratitude bubbles in my heart.  Not only for the folks who have gifted me, but also for the Divine Power of Love, the God of My Heart in whom all things are possible.

Wishing you a shower of blessings this week that are conducive to your happiness!

My Father and several Uncles were Veterans of WWII.  Many of my friends and classmates served in Vietnam.  Today is Veteran’s Day.  A day for honoring the men and women who have served our country in wars fought over the years, including the Civil War.

Veteran’s Day is a national holiday.  I invite you to take a few minutes to give thanks to these gallant people and their families.  If you are local to the SF Bay Area, check out the Petaluma Parade, the biggest Veteran’s Day parade  north of the Golden Gate.  It is always enjoyable, emotional and full of American small-town flavor.

This traditional event, always held on November 11, begins at 1:00.  If you plan to go, get there early, as available parking fills up fast.

We all make decisions; snap decisions, thoughtful decisions, tough decisions, simple decisions, good decisions, bad decisions, informed decisions, intuitive decisions.  

We don’t spend too much time or give too much thought to dozens of daily decisions: what to wear, eat, read, watch, clean, cook, etc.  These are routine, almost automatic choices we make frequently throughout our day.  

Then we face the more challenging, sometimes difficult and often out-of-the-ordinary decisions: A new car or used car? Where to live?  Expensive shoes vs. cheaper shoes? Stay on budget or splurge?  And then there are philosophical decisions: Do I believe in God?  If so, what kind of God?  Do I decide to affiliate as a Republican, a Democrat or an Independent?

When facing difficult decisions, exploring and widening our options, consulting wise counsel, curbing our optimism or pessimism, and seeking Divine guidance are useful strategies.  Ask yourself what advice you would give your best friend, your partner, or your child.  If possible, use the 24 hour, sleep-on-it rule.   Accept that you will make decisions that you regret as well as ones that make you happy.

I invite you this week to look at how you make important decisions. 

To read this week’s Blog, you will have to go to www.melannie-insights.com, and click ‘Morning Sky’.

Thank you all for your patience and ongoing support!  Wishing everyone an awesome week!

Melannie

Google’s top two definitions of ‘miracle’ are:

– a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency.
– a highly improbable or extraordinary event, development, or accomplishment that brings very welcome consequences.

Magnitude is only suggested.  We are all aware of miracles both  magnificent, and so small we may not take notice. There are life-changing miracles such as meeting your true soul mate, landing that perfect job, having the perfect home just drop into your lap. And then there are smaller, ‘day-changing’ events like the chance salesclerk who treats you like royalty, the car repair that turns out to be minor, the traffic that moves quickly when you thought you were running  late.

Let’s be on the lookout this week for miracles, miracles, miracles!

Change is inevitable.  For mortals it begins at conception.  We grow in Mother’s womb for nine months, and then we’re expelled.  This is the beginning of a lifetime of change.

Changes range from small and imperceptible to enormous and overwhelming.  Our bodies, our minds, our environments…all are constantly shifting.

There is joyful change, unwelcome change, little change, big change, traumatic change, ecstatic change, simple change, complex change, seasonal change, climate change, and aging.  The only constant is change.

Although change is an essential part of living and dying, we often rebel against it, try to avoid it, outsmart it, and just plain not face it.

I invite you this week to look at the nature of change in your life.  To make necessary adjustments; to find acceptance; to embrace change.

Life is a series of ups and downs.  Suffering is part of the human condition.  We all suffer; physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.  There are moments when it is unspeakably challenging to move through our suffering.

It is a lonely walk.  Yes, we can have (and be willing to accept) support from many quarters,  but it is a solo journey.

On my path, I am often reminded of a saying from A.M.O.R.C.  It is upon the golden cross of life that the rose of the soul blooms.

Suffering is profitable as well as seemingly senseless.  As you navigate the stream of life, I invite you to let go of ‘senseless’ and embrace ‘profitable’.

Early this morning I had one of ‘those’  dreams.  “Wow, oh wow….,” I heard myself saying as I woke.  A dream so engrossing, I knew I had to write it down.  Overcoming my resistance, I got up, found pad and pen, and, ten pages later, I am happy it won’t be lost in the stream of consciousness that follows.

Everybody dreams.  Not everyone remembers dreaming.  Unless written or recorded, even the most powerful and intense dream will  begin to fade by evening.  Sleep research has shown that dreaming occurs during the  REM phase of the sleep cycle, and is essential to our health.

Dream is both noun and verb.  A dream is a language of images, a symbolic language.  We each have a unique dream dialect.  Recording our dreams allows us to interpret meaning based on our personal dream language.  For example, a ‘black cat‘ in my dream may not represent the same meaning as a ‘black cat’ in your dream.

I am so very grateful that I am a dreamer.  My dreams guide me, teach me, do a lot of process work for me, and contribute to restful sleep and good health.

This week I invite you to acknowledge and honor your dream world.