Shady Oaks Reflection Room

I find it easy to be grateful for the positive things; the mild weather, the smell of honeysuckle, the cool breeze, my family and my friends. But it is when something is happening in my life or to me that I perceive to be as negative (the bruise on my shin from being knocked over by my dog, the large tractor repair bill that is looming, the struggle to make myself work out, the rude neighbor, etc.), I have a hard time conjuring up gratitude.

I find it a worthy spiritual practice to ask myself the following question: What in my life right now is asking to be acknowledged as a gift?

This leads me to explore how a negative experience in my life can be perceived as a gift.

This will be our next topic of discussion on Wed. at noon, in the Shady Oaks Reflection Room.

How do you give yourself care and show yourself love? How do you like to receive love?

I go out in the sunshine and watch my two dogs place keep away with a frisbee. I smile and laugh and generally feel happy all over.

What activities, or behaviors make you feel loved?

We will discuss Caregiving (of ourselves and others) at the next Shady Oaks Reflection Room discussion, on Wed. at noon.

You are invited.

What are the personality traits or behaviors that are predominant in your life? How do they serve you and how do they hold you back?

My big one is ADT- Attention Distraction Tendencies. Some people call this ADD- Attention Deficit Disorder, but I have no deficit of attention; it just goes in a lot of directions.

Wednesday at noon, in the Shady Oaks Reflection Room, we will be exploring the gifts and the challenges of all the behavior traits that make up a person. Wow, that is a big order! Maybe we can have some fun with it and learn a little something about ourselves.

Personal power is about having integrity: keeping our promises and commitments to others and to ourselves.
Personal power involves response-ability: the power to consciously choose our responses instead of reacting to situations and people.
Personal power is the power to push through or around obstacles.
These are only a few of the comments made in the discussion group on Personal Power yesterday.

What does power, personal power, mean to you? Is it the ability to ask for what you want or to say no when someone makes a request of you? Is it feeling like you have a lot of control over your life?
How does personal power come into relationships?
All food for thought...
Let's chat about it tomorrow in the Shady Oaks Reflection Room.

Sunday, at 11 am, the Spiritual Discussion Group will meet in the Shady Oaks Reflection Room. I have been thinking about faith lately; having faith, losing faith, faith in a power that supports me. Some people find their answers in a traditional religious practice. Not finding traditional answers adequate for me, I am searching for my own answers. Often the wisdom of others, in their searches , provides clarity and support for me.
I invite you to join us in this discussion.
We will also be doing card readings for each other at 10am. Sometimes messages come in different and unique ways. We will have some fun exploring. Come and join us for a rich discussion.

Are your goals push goal or pull goals?

Do you have goals in your life? How are you moving forward toward those goals? Are you stuck in procrastination, or teenage resistance (that's my favorite- You can't make me), or lack of energy or true passion to meet those goals?
Tomorrow, Wed. Feb. 21st at noon we will talk about how we motivate ourselves. Goals can be health related, career focused, relationship improvements or be related to moving past a troublesome event. Your goal might be to reduce anxiety in your life or to find a life partner. It might be to have more energy to do the things you love to do.
Whatever your goal is, come to this discussion to learn how others succeed at moving forward, and share any tips you may have to give.

Happy Valentines Day friends. I invite you to drop in today at noon or 5pm.

My Thanksgiving and my Christmas cacti have turned into Valentine's cacti. So I am sending these out to you to wish you all a happy Valentines Day. Be especially good to yourself on this Valentines Day. Say loving things to yourself all day long. Celebrate you.

This Valentines Day, I plan to focus on unconditional love for myself and others. I will be at the Shady oaks Reflection Room at noon and at 5pm to hear what others have to share about this topic. Maybe we will make valentines for ourselves...