The Blurred Lines

"Keep your enemies close, but your friends closer."

I know, I know. The saying usually goes the other way right? But that unfortunately mostly only holds true for people like James Bond. For us normal, everyday average common-folk, unfortunately it is the people we call family and friends who turn out to be the most villainous and harmful to our lives.

When we look back in context to every one we have ever had a battle with, anyone we have intentionally strove to hurt or attack, or held a grudge against it has usually been someone we once upon a time cared for. They were either family, or someone you were once good friends with. It's a sad thing, but for the most part, fact. 

Nobody can drive a person to such degrees of anger, and extended loathing better than someone who was once close to them. There are of course, a few exceptions but they are simply too horrible to list here.  The point of it is, when we reflect on our actions what have we discovered?

Were you the person to drive that friend to hate? Or were you pressed down, walked on and back stabbed to become that person of ire? The people you hate the most, are they people you used to believe were on your side? The line between love, hate and obsession is a very small, thin and often times blurred one. And that's what makes it so hard to fight off these feelings of animosity. 

What many people fail to realize is that if someone is a good friend to you, they can easily become your worst enemy. Not just because the more they care about you, the deeper the anger will run - but because they happen to know you. And an enemy that knows you best is by far the most dangerous thing. 

So for those of you that treat those who care about you abrasively, you may want to take a step back and reflect on if that is a good idea. Because how well can a person hurt you after they've known you? Friendship and love is a very powerful thing, and you may not want to toil it away, for true friends are few and far between.

Mind how you treat those around you, be conscious of how you treat others. And keep your friends close. Because the strongest love can be turned into the most toxic of hate. 

My advice to those who do have feelings of animosity and hatred for someone you once cared for - whether they be a friend, family, or family friend - let it go. And if you cannot, then try. Do not provoke. Don't antagonize, and don't initialize. Just let it go. Life your life, love new loves, and learn to let go of the anger towards others that you have.

At the end of the day, if you cross those blurred lines, the only person you truly hurt is yourself. By the time a war is done being fought, no one truly sees eye to eye. There is no resolution. Only the end of explosive arguments. And then everyone goes off to lick their wounds on their own.

Seething in unresolved anger is not good. So find a way to let it go. Whether that be communication and forgiveness, or just simply moving on with your life and putting the thought of the one who brings out those feelings away. Let it go. So that way the past does not tether you in an endless loop of drama and pain. 

A Collective of Broken Hearts

Quite often, I find people are drawn to me. And while I attract many types of people, I find quite a lot of "Victims" are magnetized in my direction. You'll noticed, I've capitalized that word. And placed quotations where there ought not to be.

I love my origins. I love where I come from, and I love helping people. I am always more than willing to take a bleeding heart and help the seeping wounds close and heal and scar. I find a sense of completion when once there were tears streaming down a face, there becomes a sudden smile.


 Now. What has encouraged this blog? Nothing as of late directed at me. I have learned over years of hard lessons, trouble and obsessed attention seekers to differentiate my friends, and those who use me for attention and purposely enjoy toying with someone's good intentions, those who purposely perpetrate themselves as perpetual constant victims of circumstance..  But I have a few friends who have yet to learned how to wall off those who would take advantage of their gentle natures.

It rightly pisses me off when my friends (and sometimes myself) get used in such a manner. Because these people are like the Boy Who Cried Wolf. These people make up circumstances, cry woe is me. And it makes good hearted people not want to trust others who truly need a shoulder or an ear.

Now. I know I can't change Attention Seekers. In fact, it frustrates me to say that there are legitimate studies to say that its a actual pathological disorder called "Münchausen" syndrome. I can't actually hold these people accountable - but I do believe that almost everything pathological can be prevented, and many of it is mind over matter. I believe THIS particular disorder is created by bad habits - that feed and snowball into a bad pathological path, and develops into a 'disorder.' And people should not be coddled for intentionally screwing with kind people who do their best everyday to be a good person, or a wonderful friend to those they truly believe need it.

But I am going to offer this: Everyone is a victim to their own circumstance. EVERYONE has the power to change their circumstance. Every person that you know,  every person on the train or bus that you ride, every person of every floor of every building.. we've all had our hearts broken, or bodies broken, or will crushed. We've all been oppressed at some point, we've all had our heart breaking stories.

It's not bad to seek the love and affection of another, or to find an open ear. There is no shame in crying to a friend, or breaking down after a hard day. We are all a collective of broken hearts. And together we make a beautiful Muriel, and if we tell our stories properly we can all be a story of success, strength, courage, and empowerment. Human beings have the capacity to pull together in the most tragic of times, our collective of broken hearts motivate us to pull others up and out of the pain. We slowly piece each other  back together again.

And that is how it should be. To those who continuously strive and struggle against those who would make you fools, or toy with your emotions, string you along and upset you for no good reason other than their enjoyment... stay strong. Because this world does need your kindness. Because your rare kindness could the the life changing difference that someone needs.

Therapeutics for the Anxious

Anxiety is the feeling of fear, unease and worry. The source of these symptoms are not always known.

For way too many the day starts the same. Eyes open, and immediately reeling through their mind is a long list of things they need to do, things they didn't get done the previous day, and how they simply know what won't get done despite telling themselves a thousand times to do it. 

Anxiety... it grips everyone from time to time. But some people suffer more than others. Others are gripped by a constant heavy weight on their minds. Day after day they're worn out by the constant nagging of stress or worry. And a lot of times it's due to a hormonal imbalance - and there is no actual cause to stress. And for these people the consoling thought of : "worry not about what you cannot control" has no effect other than causing them to worry more. 

Fear not. You're not alone. And this little Native girl has some solutions that may cause some relief - because believe it or not despite my wide perspectives and knowledge I too suffer from this strange causeless anxiety. And well...how am I supposed to help people when I'm freaking out myself? Once again the difficult task of overcoming this life problem is not going to be easy. But it's possible! I promise. 

First the key is to finding a way to bring calm to you. Which, is kind of hard because if you could calm down you wouldn't be having anxiety right? Right. Luckily I have a few tricks up my sleeve. Every where I go, I always have access to a few detrimental key herbs. Lavender, Peppermint, Chamomile and Desert Sage. 

To all of my clients that I go and heal and counsel, I generally always bring them a small sachet of it. Just a little organza bag (which.. is usually a soft colour like white or lavender) stuffed with a mixture of these herbs. These herbs have actually been proven to help your brain when you smell them. It sends soothing signals to your brain. A lot of people I care for who tend to have anxiety attacks carry one of these with them every where they go and have reported to me it has cut the amount of attacks they have down a good percent. 

If you feel like you need one of these, please click the buy now button at the bottom of this page to go to our online store!

Next thing. If you have the availability put on your earphones and blast some music. As loud as you like it. And just listen to it. Enjoy it. This helps especially if you don't have a little lavender bag for yourself. A lot of people say 'put on some piano music, calming music." I say bugger that. It doesn't have to be a genre. What is the point in trying to listen to something you're not enjoying. Whatever the mood you're in, put it on. Music that you like brings out happy endorphins, which means less anxiety for you. 

Once you are able to get over that first little shock of anxiety eating at you, it's easier to lose your mind to happier places. I find that once I'm able to relax a little bit I can visualize things that make me happy. Especially with the music going. The thing about anxiety is it can make you feel as if you don't time or energy for the things you enjoy. But if you just let the things you enjoy flood into your day to day, you'll find the anxiety is always lessened. 

These are just a few tips and tricks. The day to day stress will always be there but you don't have to be chained down by the fear and stress of just... life. Life is meant to be lived, and existing in a world where you're always anxious is not living at all. So take the time to find things you enjoy and do them. Gardening, music, dancing, singing, conversing with the people who make you laugh... these are all good anxiety relievers and remember: Isolating yourself will only make you feel worse. So get out there and talk to someone ...you'd be surprised what a good venting to someone who gets you can do for your stress levels. 

So? What else can help you? I found a really great page from a really great person who tells us how she deals with her anxiety. And guess what? She's a PROFESSIONAL anxiety slayer! Check out her page on Anxiety and read it through. If my little tips and tricks didn't help, I bet you hers will when you check out her page in A Brave Life. 

Life is meant to be lived. And you can't live worrying and stressing all the time. So get lost in your joy - and do your best to learn to let go all the needless stress.  Mean while, here is a link to purchase of our anxiety sachets.White Cauldron Inventory

The Most Contagious Disease of Humans: Hate

 "People talk about history and things like slavery, genocide, and religious persecution as horrors that happened in the past because they were ignorant. But nothing has changed. People still hate what they don't understand."

 - J. Matthew Nespoli

Looking around me everyday I see new posts on social media websites, more news on TV and Internet and Newspapers on act acts around the world. I see more peoples hateful responses to the hate. I see peoples hateful responses to the hateful responses to the hate.

And my stomach begins to churn. 

I have to resist the urge to cry.

And sometimes even some of the responses invoke an anger in me that tempts me to response in a hateful way as well. 

Hate...as it just so happens...is contagious. 

We all know that Love is contagious and spreads the more it's given but.. hate is so much more powerful. It sneaks up on us in the most unexpected of ways and in the most unexpected places. In today's world there are blatant and ugly displays of nationality racism, Sexuality racism, Breed Stereotyping, and that is just the tip of the iceberg. There is SO much hate in the world I could not possibly take the time to list any more because it literally could go on... forever.

People are teaching their children to hate. People are teaching others to be afraid of things. People are learning to be afraid of being themselves or of just other people in general because of this monstrosity of a society we call "civilization." And when I think about it I am overwhelmed with a huge deep sadness. Even writing this article I'm struggling not to cry and my heart is so heavy it feels as if at any moment it could drop into my stomach.

Why do people hate?

This is an absolutely genuine question. Is it ignorance? The fear of the unknown? Were you taught to hate something by your parents as a child? Did something bad happen to you causing you to despise the object/people of your affliction? Do you even have a reason? And to the people who preach about morality to their peers, or their children or even to themselves? Do you turn another cheek at any given time? Can you HONESTLY tell me a reason at all? Or when you think about WHY you hate it, are all you come up with are empty lame excuses. Do you blame Religion for your hate? Do you honestly feel there is ever a good reason to hate something to the point of tragedy?

Because like it or not - your hate is an automatic tragedy.

It's tragic your life is interrupted by the foulest negativity any of us can induce on ourselves. It's tragic your energy is wasted on such darkness when there is so much love we could give. It's pathetic that you can't take the time to try and understand what it is that you hate  so you can try to accept it. Because in the end...everything we hate is an inevitability. And taking the time to feel foul against it is nothing but a waste of yourself. It's a waste of what purity you could have within you. It's a contribution to the heavy cloud of ugliness that is within the human populous. It's an additional reason why when we look in the mirror we have insecurities or despise what we see. 

And what's a further tragedy...

Seeds of hate are sown from the smallest harvests of careless statements, thoughts, or actions.

A small careless statement, a floating judgemental thought, an deed done without thinking it through. Hate is done through the smallest and biggest of things. And once it's born it's so incredibly hard to let acceptance and love back in. And even the smallest tendrils of hate are able to grow. And they do. Hate had a tendency to grow, and multiply, and spread. It's a plague. To me..hate is one of the worst diseases of mankind. It's saddest thing.  because once a person begins to hate...they are never the same again.

Remember when we were kids and hate did not exist in our arsenal of feelings?  I do.

And what's the saddest thing is even I have been infected by hate. Thankfully I'm able to recognize it... and once I do I take the time to understand what it is I'm hating and find a way to accept it or reconcile with it. Because hate simply takes too much of my precious energy. Because I am way to busy trying to fight off the negativity of others to feel negativity of my own. 

And it's so hard to do. Because hate sows the seeds of more hate and it's infectious like a virus...more so infact. Nothing good ever comes from hate. Sadness, violence, death, pain, and agony. Those my friends are the symptoms of hate. And NOT just for the recipient of a persons hate either. 

If you have EVER thought that you wanted to be a better person - start by trying to rid yourself of hate.

It's hard. But it is possible. Because when I'm not staring out into a void filled with people hurting each other with words and iron and fist, struggling against the empathic vibe of hate that feels like heavy heat that feels like a crushing weight on my heart... I'm focusing on the tendrils of light coming out of the gloom. The sparks of light and love that are people reconciling with things they hate or dislike every day. People who have the strength and passion to better themselves by shedding discrimination and hatred for each other and everything around them.

So if hate is a disease... strive to be a cure. And the cure is love.

What is Strength?

So what is strength? No, I'm not talking about the kind of strength where we go and see how many kilos we can lift or how hard and fast we can hit a ball. I'm talking about inner strength. Strength of the heart, strength of the mind.

So what is it? It astounds me how many people I know when they are feeling down say things like: "I'm so weak," and "I feel so helpless," or "I wish I was stronger. If I was stronger I could handle this better." It astounds me because I feel as if no one is ever told how strong they really are.

Strength is a very vast thing. And depending on perspective it can be a very tricky thing. People think you need to be strong and never let your pain show. Others feel that if you are able to put your vulnerabilities out there you're stronger than those who make walls of steel around their hearts. But I want to shed that comparison and put a new perspective out there for people to think about, and I hope it helps everyone who is feeling weak and down or out of bounds realize just exactly how strong they are.

Strength is thinking about that easy way out - but not taking it. Strength is every day living, handling the stresses of every day life as it continuous on. Strength is taking the pain of being walked on and handling it, then moving on and having the courage to trust again eventually. Strength is taking care of your loved ones, whether it be poor health or they just simply rely on you - providing that security and care for them is absolute strength. Strength is doing what you feel needs to be done - making hard decisions and executing them even if you are afraid of the outcome, even if things are not certain. Strength is moving forward - no matter how hard it is to keep going. Strength is facing your fears - even in the smallest of ways. Strength is determination and resolution.

Strength is living. Everyday it takes strength to continue with our lives. We all have stories. We all have problems. And every single one of us is strong for getting up and getting on with our lives despite our problems.

So even if you feel down trodden and helpless. Keep moving forward. You've been strong enough to do it all this time. You're strong enough to keep on going.

Monumentally Inconsequential

When the sun is shining brightly, the temperature is comfortable and there is a gentle breeze kissing the skin of your face, how do you feel?

I suppose there is not really one answer. It would depend on your mood, your circumstances, and your frame of mind. It's not always fluffy clouds and wide skies, and stars that we can reach for. Sometimes even on the bluest, brightest of days our skies are dim and dark. 

Have you ever felt monumentally inconsequential? Have you ever felt so useless you wondered why you keep on walking? Felt that nothing you ever did makes any sort of dent in anything you've ever wanted to accomplish so in all honesty the smartest choice is to give up? Have you ever fought the urge to just flop on the ground in the middle of the street and say: "I give up. Nothing I do will make a difference anyway,"?

Yeah. You're not alone. If you have people around you, look at them. Scan the room. I bet four out of five people have felt that way too. Monumentally inconsequential. In fact, I'll be honest. Today, even now as I'm writing this, I myself am feeling it. 

I have no motivation to continue on with my book. I'm looking for a job that feels like it just does not exist any where for me. I need to start school for a career I'm terrified I'll be old by the time I eventually get there. I feel like I am treading the deep waters of my own life. I am not swimming forward, I'm not even drifting to the sides or backwards. I'm just...dead in the water. 

But do you know what is actually monumentally inconsequential? That monumentally inconsequential feeling is. It doesn't matter how hopeless or lazy, or useless you are feeling. It's important to remember during these times that your existence is not inconsequential. There is someone or something who is counting on you to keep going. Keep treading the water until the current gives you an opening to move in the directions you need. That no matter how hopeless you feel, Hope is always just buried underneath it, waiting for you to reach down and grab it through the muck of that despair. It's important to realize that if you have no motivation sometimes you just need to buck up and do it before that inspiration hits no matter how hard it is.

We will always face times where we feel ...monumentally inconsequential. Beat down and hopeless. Unmotivated and gutless. We are human. It's a part of our lives. It is from these times that we reflect most heavily on "Why me." And though it may not feel like it at the time: it is a lesson that will help you for the next rocky part of your life, and adventure. 

We take these moments of monumental consequentiality and we have a choice: We can either let it drag us further down. We can let the pessimism of life win, and convince ourselves that we are  a victim to life and everyone and everything in that life, and we are always miserable. Or we can use the good times and good people to help uplift us. We can dredge on past it - even though it feels as if we are walking in waist high mud. We can keep going, and keep trying no matter how hard, how painful, and how draining that effort truly is (because believe me, I know EXACTLY how mentally and emotionally draining these tedious times in life can be). And we can conquer.

We are NOT inconsequential. Not a single one of us. Every body. And I do mean EVERYBODY has a purpose. A goal. A life. And all of us milling about our daily lives, living day to day, defeating every moment of feeling inconsequential effects our world. Creates a synergy. A purpose. 

Every single one of us is monumentally consequential - even if we do not recognize that we are.

The Lure of Cruelty - The Reward of Kindness

"It's so much easier to be bad than good. It feels so much more empowering to be cruel than kind. It's so much harder to be wise than ignorant, so much more painful to open our eyes and see the world around us as it is. But have you noticed how much more rewarding taking the hard way of life can be?"

Time for a confession readers. When I was younger... I was on a very dark path. Numb to the feelings around me, I took a grim satisfaction within myself in hurting others. I wasn't ever violent. I was much worse. I was cruel with my words.  

 It wasn't until I was older that I realized how lonely I was because of this. I made a change. And it was hard. I had to lose my temper. Which meant letting go of my anger towards everything around me. And it was terrifying. My anger at the time was my only strength I felt. It was what made me open my eyes in the morning, and breath during the day. It was what made me tick and function. I felt my very existence  filled with anger and bitterness and even loathing was a way to spite everyone and everything that had hurt me.

To be honest, I had been bullied in school for a long time before I got to this point. It is just a part of what made me into the dark creature I was. I justified hurting others by telling myself they would hurt me first if I did not. They would turn on me. They were all liars anyway. 

I am told I have a gift with words. A way about describing things, and putting things into perspective. And I had that when I was younger too. However I used it to maim and hurt people. I was full of anger. And animosities. I was hurt, and scared, and bitter.  There are reasons for it.. but the reasons are not important. The point was... I was incredibly awful. Making people cry or wary, hurting the feelings of those closest to me. It make me feel stronger. Braver. Untouchable. Invincible. I had a wall of spiteful hatred built around me and it kept everyone at bay: something I hated and something I relished. 

I was safe. From everyone. But as I grew older I realized that it wasn't right. And as my mother, who is also my mentor and teacher in Shamanism tried to help me grow past it so I could take up my heritage and birthright... she said words to me that have forever been engrained in my mind: "It is so much easier to be bad than good, baby."

These words were said to me one night while crying in her arms, asking her WHY I had turned into what I was, and why the people had done the things they did to me to make me that way.  Why were they  so cruel to me? And why did I feel the need to be cruel to everyone else?

These words, after I had calmed down and reflected on their meaning made everything make so much sense to me that it frightened me. It was true. It was easy to ignore the crying girl on the curb and just keep walking, or the broken down car on the highway. It was so much easier pretending not to notice that kid over there bullying the other. It was so much easier to bully other people than to look at them with equality and kindness. It felt so much better to feel stronger than the people around me. 

And that was why people are cruel. It's so much easier to simply not CARE. Because caring gets you hurt. Helping gets you walked on or over looked sometimes. TRYING seems useless. And for what purpose? It's so much easier to dwell in your own negativity and loathing than it is to let it go. 

Let me tell you. Even the kindest shamans understand. It's was so hard to let go of all the anger inside me as a young teenager. Trying not to let it consume me everyday until I wasn't angry at everything everyday was like being clawed from the inside out by horrible talons.

But I did it. And when I let go of all the ugly within me, I found someone I can stand. Someone I like. Someone who cares, no matter how much it gets me hurt. Someone who loves whole heartedly the stranger on the street, or the ones who are closest to me. Someone who tries, no matter how many times she fails. Someone who is willing to sacrifice time and energy to help another. 

Sometimes...it's still hard. There have been so many times where myself, or my Shaman mother, or my warrior brother, my elders or tribal brothers and sisters have wanted to give up. To not care. To give up what we know an just dredge forward and give into our own negativity. Or my lost little sister wants to give up on growing up and trying to find her place within her own world. We are tested. CONSTANTLY we are tested, and bullied and thrown around or taken advantage of.  But we are there, urging each other forward. Nursing our wounded positivity and love for the world back to health. Reminding each other why are who are we are and what we are instead of like everyone else. Repeating the things to our teachers TO our teachers when they too become tired and heavy.

And the reason we do this, the point of keeping our chin up when our life is loaded with heaviness... is because it is more rewarding. We get pleasure out of healing a wounded animal or person. We find joy in the smiles of happiness we get from a grateful person. The warmth of someone trusting us, and becoming a part of our world, and the pride of someone moving forward and making themselves better. If you are a cynical person you will understand it this way only: It's because we selfishly find being kind far more rewarding and pleasurable than being cruel. 

But we are not only rewarded with these things for our endurance of resisting the temptation to be cruel. We have a family, a tribe that surround us with absolute love. Even from far away. We find karma favours us and sometimes when we desperately need a boost from life we get a huge one. And we are not lonely in our irrevocable bond with each other and with other people. We are respected, and admired, just as we respect and admire each other and ALL of those who choose to be kind, or better themselves.  Life is kinder. Sweeter... and we can appreciate ourselves, and look at ourselves with pride as people.

It IS so much easier to be bad than good. But being good leaves a much sweeter taste, a more fulfilled feeling. And hey. It also turns out I feel stronger for it too. I feel much braver being kind than I did when I was cruel.

Emotional and Mental Detox

Music videos are a rare thing for me to post in my blog. But I encourage you to push play while you read this post entry.  Because it's appropriate. It's the closest thing I've ever heard Hope be put into a musical composition. Maybe that's just me I love it though. So enjoy it while reading!

Sometimes, we are overwhelmed with that dark feeling of helplessness. We fight to get out of bed in the mornings. We are are dreary throughout the day. Smiling feels out of place.  Maybe you have a vice that keeps you elevated - but makes your days prove to be worth nothing. Perhaps you don't even remember your days due to said vice. For some... being nothing is better than being themselves. And..perhaps that's understandable for some. For me, I see it as a waste of the precious life we are given. Chatting with the people you love is heavy and hard to accomplish, because all you want to do is curl up in their arms and stare in silence while they listen to it, or perhaps verbally vomit everything that's wrong.

But you don't, because you don't want to burden them. Or worry them. Or drag them down. Sometimes, finding the motivation to do your job, or work on your underachieved dreams, or function as a human being seems out of reach. It seems in your head there is a buzzing, a constant stream or noise - when all you want is silence. Or perhaps all there is in your world is the roaring, deafening silence, a nothingness - a lack of your 'something.' And all you want is to feel normal again.

The longer you stay in this slump the harder it is to drag yourself out of it. And take it from someone who knows: The harder is it to drag yourself out of it, the less likely you'll be able to do it on your own. Then who knows how far you will drop in gradual declining pit you've managed to fall in.  So... keep reading. Maybe I have some advice that will help.

And I hope you're listening to the song. Hopefully like me, it fills you with an inexplicable joy.

So maybe what you need is a cleansing. A detox of all of your fears, and stresses. Even if the source of your emotional pitfall is unknown and mysterious. Maybe its just everything causing you to feel this way. Maybe it's just life. You're feeling low, vulnerable, and weak.

So its time to relax in your favorite position, close your eyes and meditate. Yes, Meditate. I know what you're thinking, it's corny, its awful, it's cheesy, its so...generic. Shut up and just read. People never give 

You're busy? Make time. Find time. We all have time if we allow ourselves. Sometimes we forget that our selves, our mental and physical health and well-being is the priority. How can we expect to accomplish anything when we have exhausted ourselves. You cannot help others, you cannot work, you cannot function if you are do not make yourself the priority.  

So again. Relax. Anywhere is fine. Wherever you find the most soothing, comfortable, however I do recommend outdoors, in a quiet setting. Close your eyes, and take a deep breath.

Then another. Then another. Don't think about anything but your breathing.  Some of you think you can't just switch your minds off. If you can empty your mind, do it. but if you can't it's okay! Not all meditation is the same. Focus on breathing, and if your mind will not quiet, think actively about your breathing and count. Count slowly to five as you breathe in, and count slowly has you hold your breath for a few seconds, count slowly as you slowly breath out. 

If your mind wants to drift as you slowly relax. Let it  - as you relax, and truly relax, perhaps your mind can seek solace in itself, answer its own doubts. Perhaps it will simply take you to that place in your imagination where you feel the safest, happiest. Take thirty minutes to an hour for just you. For just this quiet. For your mind to roam freely - unrestrained by the logic of life or the cruelty of reality. Let it go to a place where it's soothed, comforted or where it can reason with itself. 

Sometimes it is not sleep alone that is enough to rejuvenate us. Our minds and bodies just sometimes need a moment to reboot, to balance itself.  To find that spark of motivation. To find that initial goal that drives you forward. Or to release and let go of all of the heaviness that is wearing you down - whatever it may be.  Meditation can do that. 

If you cry. You cry. Its a cleansing. A release. And that's okay too. This is detox in it's most natural form. And anything you do help yourself to get rid of the rock in your stomach, the hole in your chest, and the chip on your shoulder in this meditation is acceptable. 

Meditate to music. Or drums. Or silence. Or the darkness of night. Sit up right or lay down.  There is no "correct" way to meditate. As long as you are comfortable, and lifted from the confines the pit you've put yourself in. 

You never know. You may just come out of meditation and realize you were never in a pit to begin with.

Detox - The Proper Way (Body)

One of the many things about today's society that bothers me is the hype about "Detoxing" as part of a daily routine for diets. There is a lot of misguided thoughts about Colon Cleansers and Detoxes that make people think: "This will help me lose weight!"  It also strongly bothers me when people take western medicine to do this. Why are you taking a pill for detoxing your body - a pill that has an entire rapsheet of "potential side-effects?" Please. Can anyone explain this logic to me? Why would you not go the natural route - the route where the worst side effect's you'll get is an upset stomach?

The point of Detoxing your body is not to lose weight. If you lose a pound or two from doing doing such a thing to your body it simply means you had a lot of excess waste within your system - and it has been purged. It does NOT mean continue to do so - and you will keep losing weight. Because this method of losing weight is achieving two things: Dehydration and malnutrition. You are succeeding in giving yourself a constant stream of diarrhoea that is in no way shape or form beneficial to you once the initial detox has completed it's cycle. And that is why your body is withering away, it has nothing to do with "weight loss."

Why does this bother me so much? Well. I'm a shaman, and often times I prescribe a colon cleansing or a bodily detox to the people who ask me for help. I am a healer - and the hype the media and scum-bag dietary con-artists have plotted up are making the world unhealthy.  

Let me first explain what detoxing the body is for, because some of you may not understand. A detox of the body, sometimes called a "colon cleansing," is for the purpose helping ones body rid itself of the waste that has lined the digestive system and bowels - and has remained stuck there for longer than it needs to be. It also is good to help rid oneself of excess toxins from drug use, alcohol consumption and smoking (diuretics are also good for this.) Just to reiterate: Its called a colon "cleansing" and a "detox" for a reason. It aids in getting rid of withdrawals from substances as well by flushing them out of your system. 

And you do not need to do this more than once or twice a year - unless your an avid absorber of toxins that effect your body in such a way.

But how? How does one detox the body safely, without pills and questionable powders that they tell you to mix into the drinks that look add and taste awful? Easy.

There are several herbs that I personally use when I am creating a tea people to help them detox their bodies. The main herbs being: Senna leaf, Chamomile, Peppermint, hibiscus and Psyllium Husk.

The first four herbs are herbs I combine into a gentle tea. It doesn't taste bad. The active ingredients are the Senna. This leaf is great for people who are constipated as well. Most of the time, if a client is simply having bowel movement troubles, this is what I use.  For older people I use less senna to make it more gentle. If a person is constipated to an extreme, I use a rather large pinch. Senna has a way of sneaking up on you, it sometimes can take several hours to kick in. That does NOT mean use more or you won't have life outside of the bathroom for at least twenty-four hours. The peppermint is to sooth the stomach while your body is purging itself, and to add taste. The hibiscus is a diuretic, and is jam packed with antibodies that will need to be replenished as your body is losing them. And Chamomile is to once again, soothe the system, and keep your body relaxed as it purges whatever is in your system out. 

Now this is tea is situational. If we are needing a strong detox, then it is always used in two light doses for the first day, then a strong dose of senna for the next day. The light dose is to prepare the body for the main purge, so that the next day it is not so rough on the person. 

Psyllium Husk is an amazing herb. This herb can be used on farm animals (cows, and horses) with stomach related issues. (You can probably ask anyone with horses - Psyllium Husk can save a horses life.) But it's gentle enough to use on people, and small animals. For people, Twice a day until your body decides to purge itself. Three spoonfuls of the herb directly in a warm (Very gentle and light dose) senna tea. This is probably best treated as a fiber powered drink - because the herb will expand, then coagulate and become mush,  and look like oatmeal if you let it leave sit. It's best to skull (Chug) this herb. The psyllium husk will then stick to whatever is in your body.  It will act to the waste within your system much like Draino acts to clogged up pipes. It will stick to it, and drag it out when flushed. 

These are proper methods of detoxing your body. Not only are they safer, and natural - but they are bound to make you healthier. Remember not to over Detox - or you will simply deplete your body of vitamins. Oh and one more thing readers - If you want to be clean and not have to worry about detoxing... see the foods below. Those are what you should be eating. Fresh and everyday!

"No matter how pretty the package - it's STILL a lie, a scam, and complete incorrect information!"

Reflection

The reflection of our lives all shimmer differently, and sometimes its hard to see it in our own personal sky. We often times move forward on our paths and it seems as if we are moving no where at all. We feel as if the eternity that stretches before us is to long, dim, and treacherous. Where are we even going? Which fork in the road do you take? Where did that person who was just holding your hand disappear too? 

Steadily we walk forward on our paths through lives. And as we move through life we grow, change, mutate like a seedling placed in rich soil. We grow tall, and straight, or we grow to the side, we branch widely or perhaps our branches are gnarled and twisted. Sometimes we are planted in the sun, and sometimes our seed was blown in the shade. 

Can you visualize the plant you have become? Who are you? 

A question we are sometimes asked - a vital question none of us are ever sure to answer. Often when we are asked that, we stammer lamely for a second before telling our name numbly. But our name is not who we are. After all there are billions of people in this world - there are going to be at least one or two people with the same name as you. 

So...who are you? The only way to know that for sure is to reflect on your past in the path (not to be mistaken for dwelling on the past my dears). You are that the hard lesson you learned on the worst day of your life. You are the joy you felt on your best days. You are the person you chose to be when you decided to help a person or not, to save a life or watch them burn. You are who you became when you took your first indecisive steps towards something unknown and bigger than you. You are the dream that you are chasing, or the dream that you are letting slip away. You are the drug and the booze that you rely on. You are your own strength. You are your own vices.

And no one else can take that away from you. You're not a number in a file. You're not a combination of letters that make a particular sound when said phonetically. You are your greatest strength - or perhaps you are your own weakness. 

Want to know the best part on this reflection? 

It will not be the same the next time you reflect back. You are constantly changing, growing - become beautiful or ugly in your own life as you live it and make your choices. Ever changing knowledge and perception within you changes who you are and how it reflects upon you.

So the next time you are asked who you are, take a few seconds to reflect back - and let the best or worst moments spew from you. And then say your name with pride. And meaning. Because while your name may be the same as that person across town, the meaning behind your name will always be different than theirs. Doesn't that make sense?

Because personally? Who I am is far more complicated than what my many names can say. When asked who I am my answer changes: "I am the a shaman, I am one who dedicates my life to helping and saving others." The next day it could be "I am a child of the earth, sister to the sky, and friend to the sea." Or perhaps it will be: "I am a girl treading the currents of life. Someone who knows pain and joy - and manages to wrap them all in one entity." "I am a healer." "I am an emotional and mental abuse survivor." "I am the daughter of a great shaman. I have Warriors and Braves for brothers, and Sisters who are a bit of everything, but most of all filled with courage and strength."

So who am I today? Today I am a young elder, serene and reflective, filled with the desire to let everyone know they are more than a name.

So reflect. And tell me who you are today. I long to know more than just the face and name. If everyone could tell their stories, write it down as if it were a novel - they would see that who they were in the beginning of the book, who they are in the middle of their book and who they will be at the end of it... will all be monumentally different.

So who are you?

What came first: The Hare or the Egg?

Many of us know what Easter is to the modern day. For the modern generations and even a few of the older ones, Easter is chocolates, Marshmallow Peeps, pastel coloured things, Colouring eggs, and then hiding them and going on hunts. A day for family to gather at events and watch their children take off wearing bunny ears and nice clothing. 

For some who are religious Good Friday and Easter sunday are representations of the crucifixion and the rising of Jesus Christ, the ending of Lent, and other such religious things. A day for worship and food, and church. 

So what was Easter BEFORE the Christian faith? What did it mean to people before it was said that Jesus walked the earth and died for a universe of peoples sins? It is sad when the world has mostly forgotten the Origins in which our global holidays derived. The account of which I am telling is just one of many origins, and not the only one. 

Some of us go through our lives wondering how the Easter bunny lay the Egg, how the legend came to be. The legend of which there are hardly any details of which, but commercialized in our consumer society heavily. Some of us dont care. but for those of you who are wondering... here it is: 


Spring. The time of renewal. The respite in the world between obscene heat and obnoxious cold. Winter has ended and summer has yet to begin. In modern days it is end of the fasting season because in historical tie the food storages were dwindling and the new food was not yet grown and ready. 

Surprisingly enough it was a combination of the Pagan and Christian religions that created the long standing tradition of colouring eggs in which a rabbit hides for the children to find. As mentioned before, Christians mark this day as the resurrection of Jesus after his death on the cross. For Pagans it was something a little different. 

In Germany long ago people worshipped a diety known as Eostra. During the same time every year, Pagan's would offer their devotion to her in the season between Summer and Winter, for she was the Goddess of renewal and fertility. Spring is often the mating season, the time for young to be born in the wilderness, for the rebirth of plants to gain new foliage. Eostra was often symbolized with the Hare - which is speculated it was due to the little rodents high reproductive rate. The full moon and the Egg were also used to symbolize the spring time Goddess. 

As Catholicism took over, Eostra gave her name to the festival day - and became known as Easter. The eggs, and rabbits were still celebrated as well as traditions throughout time from the cause of these merging beliefs. In the early 1700's, Germanic immigrants to the USA told the tale of the rabbit laying the egg. Once this story spread in the US, people began making nests in celebration, which soon mutated into Easter baskets. From there the baskets became decorated, and treats began to fill up these once-upon-a-time nests. 


In old Druidic religion, these symbols are once again enforced with Alban Eilir - the Spring Equinox. Alban Eilir means "Light of the Earth," and while the earth begins to thaw and warm life begins to grow anew. Druids see life in all living things, even in rocks and stones and rivers and springs. Plants and trees, everything is sacred to them. In their beliefs the spring Equinox, Alban Eilir the Egg is a life giving force- and the egg is protected by the hare. The Hare is also a symbol of Alban Eilir - so it all coincides. 

All over the world the hare is associated with the moon. There are many different stories of the hair in so many different cultures. These are just but small examples. In Greece, Indonesia, Egypt, China, India and Germany and many more countries there are old folklore on the Hare, and how it become associated so closely with Spring and Easter. 

So this year while you're celebrating Easter, reflect on what Easter truly means for you. Whether you are Christian, or Pagan, or Wiccan or Buddhist, why do YOU celebrate the easter Hare and the Egg? Does it mean something to you? Does being educated about a holiday make it mean something more? 

Either way, we wish you all a wonderful Easter, Alban Eilir, and Spring Time Celebration.