FRIDAY, FRIDAY

Less than 24 hours away.  I'm going to TENNESSEE.

My first Birthday trip.  Going to visit Goddess Bliss and WSM Alan and Goddess in Real Life Makena and Turtle-ini and 4 of the cutest little puppies you ever did see.  We're going to play and plan BLISS BOOT CAMP.  Stay tuned for the details.

I need this break.  

Family and grief and funerals and traditions- not a good combination for me.  Add to that my monthly flow and a most wonderful and helpful husband that at this moment I cannot fully appreciate.  Time to go!!!

Had the house cleaned yesterday - changed the energy within.  Then I went to the beach - laid out on the sand, let the sun warm my face while I buried my feet deep.  Watched the waves and the birds and listened to the sounds of the ocean.

Felt waves of tension and nerves and energy chords shatter and release.  Letting go of whatever seems to be clouding my mind since Yoshka passed away.  Being patient with myself as it travels through my body and out of my psyche.

One day at a time.

Obama and my Mama

I have the coolest Mama.

We started a Wednesday tradition - she comes over and spends the day. I am blessed with her presence for six to eight months of every year when she lives in Florida. She takes the morning train at 7:30 a.m. and by 8:00 a.m. I pick her up for our rendez-vous. Ginger Mama joins me in the drive to the train station and grudgingly gives up her front seat for my mama.

We've been doing this for 3 years now - on and off - this year more on then off. She comes over and hangs out. We go to the beach or walk in the park or take naps or hang in the jacuzzi - all depending on the Moon and her position and if the Meows would like to be with us or not.

My Mama Goddess Myam is also a great shopping companion - we love to explore Ikea and get good ideas. She has a great eye for colors and trends and is fantastic at a sales rack.

We have added a new component to our relationship. We have become busy-ness partners. This is our new venture. Not just mother and daughter and friends. Partners in creating a new imprint on this world. And we're digging back in the past to find the buried treasures.

It was not always like this. I spent years not liking her. She was thin. I was fat. She was very laid back. I was very uptight. She would say NO. I would rebel.

In September, WSM Noah and I went on a three day cruise to celebrate his birthday. Mama Goddess Myam and Dad stayed over to take care of GingerMama and the Meows. When I came home, Myam left me a gift - a pin that says MAMA for OBAMA.

Watching people line up to vote made my heart swell. So many people turned out to have their say and STAND UP and BE COUNTED. It was such a powerful vibration to see and feel and be a part of. We voted too on Tuesday morning.   I was not surprised that Obama won. HIS-STORY repeats itself. After eight years, we Americans tend to flip flop - swing to the other side and try something different for a change. The Bush reign of eight years is over.

For me, this is fabulous. Following HIS-story means that our next president will be a WOMAN. That excites me enough to have the patience and grace to accept what these four years will bring in preparation for what will be.

Go Goddesses!!! Go Goddesses!!! Go Goddesses!!!

COLD in Florida

It's been relatively COLD here in South Florida.

I say relatively because it's all a matter of perspective. There are places out there that are truly cold - temperatures registering below 0 and experiencing snow. We don't have anything like that. Once the sun rises, we get up to the 70s. Something about living in Florida or with humidity that makes the bones less capable of dealing with shifts in weather. Especially 30 degrees shift from dawn to dusk.

Something about the cold and dark and the deep recesses of the mind. It seems like I am exploring a deeper layer of dePRESSion and GRIEF. I am observing it and feeling it, yet not necessarily absorbed in it. Cell memories of a long time ago being activated.

For me COLD is when the chill sets into your bones and you just can't seem to warm up. It's always something I dreaded - WINTER. The extra layers, the clothes, the shoes, the longer darker days, living up North in CANADA. So restraining.

This year, I am accepting what is. Actually, I am going a step further. I am embracing it. Loving each and every minute of it. Allowing it to BE and me to be in it, happy. Changing my perspective. Looking for the gratitude.

It seems that part of the embracing requires preparing. I am not always prepared for winter. It always seems like such a shock to me when it arrives. I know - 40 years and I still don't always get it. I still have 3 sets of flipflops laying on my front perch. Tank tops galore and running shorts - can't always remember where I stored the sweaters and tights.

One of the joys in South Florida is when the temperature drops and the humidity lowers we can open our windows and turn off the A/C and feel fresh air from Mother Nature flow through the house. We open the windows while we drive and like a dog does, we sniff and smell and savor the exquisite stuff called oxygen. We cuddle up and use extra blankets and the Meows join us on the bed as we create our own heat. Tee hee!!!

Embracing what is - that's me.

Wishing you,
Peace & Love, Just Because,
GoddessDiana

Stepping out of my Comfort Zone

Goddess Christina invited me to a free concert back in December - an Open Exchange at the New World Symphony in South Beach on a Saturday night. Now, I am usually in bed by 9:00 p.m. and I am not in my element in a crowd. I was very surprised to hear myself responding: "Sure, I'll join you. That sounds like fun"

I almost went through with it too. Then I thought about my commitment. Drive on a Saturday night by myself to Miami and then South Beach - on a Saturday night - by myself. WSM Noah decided to make it easier for me. He offered to drive and escort Goddess Christina and I to dinner and a show. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Off we went. Hollywood Boulevard to A1A - BeachFront Avenue. As WSM Noah is weaving in and out of traffic in Sunny Isles, we are pulled over by an angry SUV - flashing its light and honking its horn - the POLICE.

WSM Noah found a parking lot to pull into. The officer came up to the car and asked for WSM Noah's driver's license. He was screaming at us asking Noah if his name was Collins. "Because you're driving like you own Collins Avenue", the cop spit out of his mouth. He was so mad, face red as a beet, chest heaving. WSM Noah just remained calm and answered the officer's questions. My feet were on the dashboard, knees bent, fingers in mudra - I'm breathing and looking forward and sending love vibes to this big guy. A few minutes later, the storm dissipated and he let us off with a warning. We drove off into the sunset. Alton Road - here we come.

We picked up Goddess Christina and made it just in time to find a prime parking spot in the street behind the theater. We walked all the way to Books and Books Cafe on the third block past Washington. It was excellent people watching and growing. The crowd of shoppers and pedestrians and people at cafes was less dense. I released my death grip on WSM Noah's hand as I relaxed and let go of the panic. Cell memories for my days of agoraphobia and panic attacks.

We had a quiet dinner outside - sandwiches and yummy salads. Great service - thank you James. Admiring the dogs and their owners strutting by. Looking through the windows of the art galleries. We stopped for some frozen yogurt at Blissberry. A free sample of chocolate at Starbucks. We ambled down to the theater and got there just in time to get some great front row seats in the mezzanine.

Onto the stage came two musicians and then three and back to two and then a group of seven - playing unique pieces of music not usually practiced in the symphony's repertoire. The artists shared with the audience what it was about the music that captured them and what to listen for - it was a very enjoyable evening. We were presented with four different styles of music and showmanship and combinations.

We got home by 11:30 p.m. We walked GingerMama and let go of the excitement and the energy of South Beach. We settled down into our own pace and headed off to bed. So much fun to try new things.

Thank you Goddess of Music for this wonderful opportunity to stretch and grow.

Wishing you,
Peace & Love, Just Because,
GoddessDiana

Sunday Scribblings #147 - Phantoms & Shadows

Funny this is the topic of the week. I have been spending these last few days in seclusion - learning how to deal with the emotions and feelings of grief. Dealing with my grandfather's death and how I feel about it. Being a witness and letting the storms within rage and subside.

I picked up a book from Soul Mama's vast library collection - Sylvia Browne's Past Lives, Future Healing. She talks about cell memories - how your soul can travel through lifetimes and hold on to the past in the physical body now. Like a shadow. Its presence can be felt however you can't always identify it.

With my grandfather's passing, an energy shifted. All the women in the family felt it. A huge relief and release. I know he is in a better place. He fluttered in on butterfly wings while I was talking to my aunt. He flitted and flotted and caught my attention and winked. Now, I feel this surge of energy within me. I breathe and let it be, just watching and waiting.

I am prepared to delve into my subconscious and see what is holding me back. Visit the phantoms and shadows lurking in my memories and locked into my cells. I am relaxed and ready for this adventure. It's like Book 1 has ended and Book 2 is just beginning.

YOSHKA - R.I.P.

My grandfather, Joseph "Yoshka" "Peps" Ijaky, died on Wednesday, January 21, 2009.

I feel like I am losing my balance. I mean I am still the same person as I was before I heard the news. Yet, parts of me feels lost and confused. Feeling things and energies that are all too much for me to process and understand right meow. Wanting to hide or run away. Closing up again. Not willing to share. Going deep within to get control of the tears. At other times, to summon them up.

Our last conversation was awful. He yelled and screamed and told me he was ready to die and that he didn't need anybody. In fact, he was really angry the last couple of times I talked to him.

My auntie put it this way:

"My father died yesterday, in Toronto.

He was 88 years old, had one kidney left..

half a heart...no eyesight & no teeth...
He died alone in his apartment,

bruised from his last fall....

Cursing at the doctor,

refusing to be taken to the hospital....

Still spitting venom all over the place....
He had managed to push everybody away...

alienate his last friends...

swearing at all of us till the last day...."

I did not know this man well. My mother's father, my grandfather, would flit in and out of my life when I was younger - always larger than life - coming back from trips to Europe and South America - an accomplished pianist, an artist, a chef. Smoking his cigarettes and always wearing a foulard (scarf) around his neck -he was more a movie star then a grandfather.

In 2000, I surprised myself and him. Wanting to get to know the members of my family better, I booked a ticket to Toronto and went to visit him for Father's Day weekend. We went out for long walks, movies, and out to dinner. We sat at the corner coffeehouse as he propounded his theories of life and what he wanted me to know. He prepared gourmet dishes in his tiny kitchen and shared his books and paintings. I was having an adult relationship with a man I was related to but barely knew. And while we did not see eye to eye about a lot of things, he was still my grandfather.

My parents left for Toronto Wednesday night. To take care of my grandfather's remains. To create some closure. To have some peace. I helped them get ready and packed and drove them to the airport. It was important for me to just BE here for my Mom.

It struck me as funny that this week I had originally planned to be in Tennesse with Goddess Bliss and her family - a 40th birthday get-away gift. And no matter what I did, the Universe conspired from me buying those tickets. Until they were no longer available.

I started having those guilt feelings come up for my last conversation with Yoshka until WSM Noah reminded me that he was at peace now. His soul had freed itself from the body that was no longer working. His energy was now soaring in the Universe. I put my hands on my heart and took some deep breaths. I felt WSM Noah's words to be true. I sent him blessings of love on his new journey. My email immediately dinged - on my Etsy site, one of his Goddess cards was purchased. The chimes outside my window ring.

Thank you for your message Peps. I love you too Yoshka. Pusi, Pusi!!!

Wishing you,

Peace & Love, Just Because,

GoddessDiana

My Man

I give him such a hard time.
I expect so much.
I want it all MEOW.

Over the years, I've been telling him so many things.
Met up with a lot of resistance.
Thought he didn't hear me.

He surprised me yesterday - after all of these years.
With his gentle manner and YES attitude.
There was so much love. We laughed.

I will focus on the millions of baby steps

he is taking each and every day to meet me halfway

I am so blessed to have him in my life.

What I know to be TRUE - for ME

START WHERE YOU ARE

USE WHAT YOU HAVE

DO WHAT YOU CAN

IT WILL BE ENOUGH

KISS - Keeping it simple, sweetie. I love this message. I have it in my wallet. I have it on my wall. It sits on a stand on top of the stereo and I have another pasted by my altar. And yet, I forget. Until I breathe and quiet myself down long enough to hear it. It's like a rhyme that slips easy onto your tongue and filters beautifully into your ears - a melody of TRUTH and simplicity.

MAGIC - "Women practice magic by calling on the powers of the Goddess, their ancestors and animal allies. They use the power of nature, the power of the seasons, the sun, moon, and stars for help. They were very in tune with the natural world and used their knowledge of how the world of nature worked to their advantage." - Catherine Wishart, excerpted from Teen Goddess

COMMUNING WITH THE STARS - If I just put one foot in front of the other and SHOW UP, the Universe always responds in kind. Today, as I was mindfully walking under the stars, I asked for a sign that I was on the right path. A meteor entered the Earth's atmosphere and I saw what is known as a shooting star. I thanked the Universe for my sign and an owl came to perch along my path. She acknowledged me: I hear you, my child.

WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT -

"I have come to believe..that what is most important to me must be spoken, made verbal and shared, even at the risk of having it bruise or misunderstood"
- Audre Lord

Wishing you,

Peace & Love, Just Because,

GoddessDiana

Life at its Own Speed

It's funny how the minute you speak or write an intention, the Universe provides challenges to see who you truly are. Opportunities to be who you truly are in every moment, each interaction. To come from love or hide in fear. I am learning that I cannot go it alone. I will have to learn to be a team player and SHARE. And though that may sound funny, it is very true.

Closely related to Goddess Bast and a Meow in many previous lives, I have always preferred a solitary life. I am very introspective and a home body at that. I love my nap times and my yoga and meditation silences.

Being with GingerMama and being her guardian, this is no longer possible. I am required to BE outside every day - at least 3-4 times a day, if not more. It doesn't matter what the elements are like or how I feel. IT IS WHAT IS best for her welfare and mine. In fact, she makes sure that we get our 10,000 steps every day (another intention I set forth).

Today I was blessed with my good friend, Goddess Leslie. She held my hand as we went through three boxes of miscellaneous papers - things that gather on my desk and I hold onto for various reasons but don't seem to move forward with.

With her help and guidance, we went through the scraps and documents and miscellaneous clippings all piled up in these boxes and sorted and filed and surrendered. Let some of it go. Clearing the clutter. Creating space for something new.

And then we napped with the Meows and Doggess-Crone Goddess Mandy. Here's another FUNNY - we both napped deep yet are very light sleepers. One little sound and we are wide awake. Does this happen to others or just women?

I then went to her house and returned the favor. We tackled some piles, did some internet research and ordering and even had half a game of Scrabble. So funny how things get done faster when you have help. Tee hee!!!

Wishing you,

Peace & Love, Just Because,

GoddessDiana

Happiness

"Happiness is a choice, not an emotion."

I am learning how very very true this is. For me, it's about SLOWING DOWN and BEE-come-ing more AWARE. Noticing & observing the little things. Being grateful that I can.

Every morning I am blessed with the privilege of taking Doggess Goddess Ginger Mama out for our daily walk. We rise with the stars and serenade the moon as we start our journey through the neighborhood. We chat with the squirrels and listen to the birds as they sing their melodies of love.

Sometimes, I can get lost in my thoughts - which happens tee hee!!! until Ginger Mama yanks my arm off and brings me back to the Now. I focus on the dramatic pre-sunrise lighting of the sky. Pinks and purples and orange.

I feel the dew on the grass and the slightly sweet putrid smell of the mango trees as they blossom. I embrace the stillness in my neighborhood as GingerMama and I walk. We BE our light as we BREATHE and witness. So many trees to hug and exchange energy with - we smell each other and absorb elder-essence-scents.

And now the clouds are dancing and getting ready to paint the sky's new gown as we await for the sun to rise. A fellow traveler in the neighborhood shouts out a Good Morning. GingerMama wags her tail as I wave. Kids waiting for schoolbuses as they play some newfangled cellular melodies with their fingers.

So many things to be happy about.

I am alive. I am breathing. I am moving. YAY!!!

Today is another beautiful day. The moon, the stars, the sun.

I get another chance to paint my canvas of life. Yay!!! Another opportunity to PLAY and BE happy, just because I can!!!

Wishing you,
Peace & Love, Just Because,
GoddessDiana

A Sacred Space

About 1 hour from Orlando and 2 1/2 hours from Hollywood, Florida there is an enchanted sacred space called BOK SANCTUARY - a sanctuary for birds, people and trees.  It also happens to be the highest elevation in Florida.  This space is so beautiful and peaceful.  You can roam the gardens or cop a squat under a big tree.   You can admire the koi fish swimming around the Singing Tower, a Carillon with 60 bells that plays concerts while you soak up the nature.  There is also a 5 foot water lily pads and a nature observatory called Window by the Pond where you can sit and observe birds, reptiles, butterflies and native species in their natural habitat.

We were first there with a brother from another mother, Brother Gilabong.  Together, the three of us explored the gardens and hills and the oaks and pines and ferns and palms and become one with nature.

For the last couple of years, I have felt a calling to create a SACRED SPACE of my own. A nesting space for the future souls who choose to come and reside.  A happy space for the fur babies who live with us now.  A peaceful place to escape the world and just BE.

All of our white walls said goodbye as each got primed and painted and made this home. We have orange and red and yellow and pink and green playing in our home.  It's made this space of ours warm and cozy.  

All of the rooms but one are painted.   The Office Space.  We tried to rename her the Creative Room but it wasn't working.  Right after Christmas day, all of the stuff on the walls came down (posters, frames, inspirations, picture - 3 boxes full, tee hee!!!).  WSM Noah spackled and evened the walls.  And now she is going to be primed for something new.  I love this feeling.  It's like having a huge white canvas to play on.

We also spent the last few weeks going back and forth to Ikea buying new tables and cabinets. It is time.  This is the core of our home.   This room has always been the space to dump everything into - bills, presents, packages, reading material, stickers, supplies.  Making it a place of OVERwhelm for me.

As everything has been taken out, I have been able to sit in this space and meditate.  Feel it from different angles and IMAGINE the possibilities.  BEing and breathing.  And communing with the walls and the window and the space.

Green she sings.  Green like the colors of Jamaica.  Green like the colors of the lush tropical forests we love to visit.   Green like the Heart Chakra.  

Feeling the feng shui and allowing it to move through me and speak to me and guide me.

Wishing you,

Peace & Love, Just Because,

GoddessDiana

Message from the Universe

Goddess SmartGirl turned me on to Tut's Adventurer's Club where I signed up for a Thought for the Day.

This is what I received one day:

Have you ever felt so down you wondered whether or not you'd bounce back? Later were you surprised by how quickly you did bounce back? And then were you surprised by how far you went? Did you promise you'd never forget how amazing that was?

Yes, yes, yes and yes!!!

I contemplated this for a long time - going back into my HER-story - thinking about what knocked me down and what helped me bounce back. And what shift or changes I had to make in order to find the gifts and move forward and beyond where I was.

When I worked as a paralegal in Miami (another lifetime, tee hee) - I used to have all sorts of chronic illnesses - stomach upsets, irritable bowel syndrome, panic attacks, agoraphobia.... I was on all sorts of medications. My psychiatrist used to dole it out like it was candy - mixing pinks with whites and yellows.What I didn't realize then and what was never diagnosed was that I was dePRESSed.

My soul was not FREE to BE me. I was fulfilling my parent's expectations and society's demands to be productive and have a job. I was following the MONEY myth (earn more, spend more). I was working crazy hours and I was very good at what I did but I was NOT happy. I was spending two and a half hours a day driving in rush hour traffic to go 36 miles.

I worked in a building where people were constantly sick. The people in my office - attorneys, secretaries and paralegals - would compete in tongue lashing and rumor mongering and office politicking and billing impossible hours for work really not done.

It was all a pit of darkness and negativity to which I would show up with a smile and gusto to do my best. I would walk out confused and drained. My emotional state quickly manifested into a very sick physical state. I was crushing the life out of my body.

The pills that were prescribed helped a little. They would regulate my moodiness and give me a little buzz. Kind of like everything going in slow mo. However, the side effects were terrible. Nausea, headaches, heart palpitations. Long term, it really messed with my head and my sense of balance and my weight. I always felt groggy, as if I was living in a fog. It was like a bandaid on a deeply infected wound.

It didn't alleviate my fears - which is what I truly had to examine. What would happen if I didn't have a job? How would I pay my bills? the mortgage, the car payment, utilities? What if I didn't have health insurance (the "benefits")? and what about my accrued funds in a 401K?

WSM Noah had his own business in aviation. As an enterpreneur in a new business, he was not always guaranteed a monthly infusion of cash. Not like the SECURITY of my twice a month paychecks and overtime and health benefits and being vested in my 401K. My benefits were covering us, just in case we ever got sick (the irony!!!) And how else would I keep on paying for my pills?

One day I quit. Just like that. My fear of DYING a life unlived was greater then my fear of not having money to pay the bills. My decision to change had been building for a long time. One day I hit rock bottom. I could not live this way a moment longer. I decided that it was time to explore something different. No more crazy drives to Miami. No more working insane hours with unhappy people. No more panic attacks.

I started working with Noah. The drive from our house to our office was 5 minutes. And I had no set hours since my husband was the boss. Within a week of working together, we made my yearly salary in one business deal. Tee hee!!! Within a month, I had all his accounts in order and collecting money from our customers. And the flow had just begun.

Tee hee!!! I can laugh now, in retrospect. I had been so conditioned. So - have a new job before you quit your old job - mentality. And all that does is keep you in the same space - different job, same issues. DePRESSion at not seeing any other options and thinking that the rest of my life would be the same.

I quit my pills too. Cold turkey. One day I felt strong enough to face life on its own terms. I started walking EVERY DAY. Being consistent with myself. Getting some air into my lungs and giving my body the exercise it was craving. Changing the way I was looking at things. Dreaming and having new thoughts. I started to cook and care about the food that was entering my body and nourishing my sacred vessel.

I started keeping my WORD to ME. The discipline I had for showing up to work, I was converting to doing things for myself. I was showing up for ME. I was changing my priorities to make ME and MY BODY the most important things in my world.

And for every little Baby Step I took, the Universe met me full force - people came into my life to encourage and support me - classes showed up that fit into my schedule. Gifts and opportunities poured in to support my lifestyle and give me the time to BE me - actually, to even figure out who that was.

To find out and see what an amazing child of the Universe I am. And allow me to find out if I liked scrambled eggs or poached or omelets (great scene at the end of Runaway Bride - KNOWING how resilient & strong I am. That I do bounce back and get HIGHer then I ever was before. And all it takes is FAITH....


Wishing you,
Peace & Love, Just Because,
GoddessDiana

Demystifying the Goddess

It's funny - people have a hard time with my name.  In fact, more WOMEN then MEN.  Tee hee!!!

Some of the things I hear:

"Hi, I'm Goddess.  No way, you're not."

"Hi, I'm Goddess.  Gladys? No, Goddess."

"Hi, I'm Goddess.  Can you repeat that?  Yes, Goddess.  That's a name?"

Some people just can't say it.  For some reason, their mouths won't open or their brains stop functioning.  Not sure.   They avert their eyes or call me by my last name, Diana.   Tee hee!!!

WHAT IS A GODDESS?

Wikipedia defines GODDESS as a female deity (SUPERNATURAL BEING who may be thought of as holy, divine or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by human beings).  

Yes, we FEmales are supernatural beings -  able to birth babies and juggle kids and jobs and husbands and FAMILIES and Meows and Bow-Wows and plants and gardens and HOUSEHOLDS  ~~~~ and the list goes on and on and on. Tee hee!!!   

Yes, WHOLE-ly (how else can we do it).  Yes, held in HIGH regard and respected by huMAN beings.   Wow!!! What a beautiful dream that is.  MAMA would be the WAY.  There would be Peace on Earth.  No MAMA would let her son, brother, husband, father go to WAR.  IMAGINE.

WHO IS A GODDESS?

A soul who connects their inner KID with their feminine ESSence.   The Goddess lives within all women, everywhere.  And men have the Goddess within too.  We are all children of the Universe, seeds of Mama Goddess Gaia, Mother Earth.

Goddesses are lush and fertile and creative and inventive and loving and warm and sacred. So many different colors and characters just like the flowers and butterflies here on MAMA Earth.

HOW DO WE FIND THE GODDESS WITHIN?   Well, we have to KISS.    KISS?  Keep it SLOW and SIMPLE ~~~ and HUGs are good too.

We choose to LAUGH.  Like children do. FOR NO REASON.   Laughing gives you an internal massage, It activates the feel good hormones in our bodies. It allows our muscles to release and let go of stress.  It puts us in the present moment so we can enjoy the gifts of NOW.  And it feels so good and yummy and healthy and fun.  Laughter Yoga Circles are great ways to meet people and laugh and heal ourselves.

We choose to BREATHE.  Deep.   All the way to our bellies.  Like babies do.   It brings oxygen to our cells.  It opens up our spine and connects us to our heart.  It relieves stress and brings us back to the PRESENT.

We choose to DANCE.  Like children do.  FOR NO REASON.  Loosening up muscles and cells. Moving our bones.   Swaying our water.  Helping the blood FLOW. We reconnect and inhabit our bodies and shake our energy all about - like the Hokey Pokey!!!

  

And slowly, slowly, one BABY step at a time - we will re-MEMBER who we ARE and how we BE (regardless of what others say and think) and reconnect with the Divine within.  The Goddess in Real Life.  It's taken me almost 5 years of baby steps and I am still laughing.  Tee hee!!!

Re-defining:  ~~~ ~~~  ~~~

              GODDESS ~~~         

Sacred soul in a 

blessed vessel - BODY - expressing LIFE 

BE-ing Peace & LOVE-LOVE-LOVE

Just BE-cause

Wishing you,

Peace & Love, Just Because

GoddessDiana

Trying New Things

Me jumping into the Black River in Jamaica

Yoga on Monday nights - yes - ME, out after dark, doing yoga. And what a practice. I felt myself going deeper in my asanas and stretching beyond any place I had ever been before. I connected with my breath and marveled at the strength and loveliness of my BODY.

And I just happened to sit right next to the one other student whose birthday it was yesterday. A happy 50th Birthday to Robert, a Cuban star, whose energy pulled me close and inspired my practice.

Raw Foods - Lunch at Greenwave Cafe - Mushroom Cheeseburger - yes - ME, eating raw fungus - and loving it!!! This was so delicious and nutritious and yummy. And the cucumber, mint limeade. Slurpilicious. And the banana ice cream. So easy to make and such a great snack. A great big Thank you to Queen Goddess YogaMommy for letting me know this place existed. And another great big Thank you to Goddess Chef Lisa for her yummy raw creations and dinner dates and cooking classes. What an exciting year this will be.

Gratitude - saying thank you on the INside and out - to each and every thing that comes my way, no matter what it looks like when I receive it. The Universe works in mysterious ways and what I see is not always what it is. Breathing and be-ing GREAT-full has brought so many blessings my way. And now, it is a muscle memory I am flexing and strengthening and appreciating. It makes life so easy!!!

Back to School - two delicious new classes to take me HIGHer in the University of Life - Suzi Blu's Be Divine workshop and Catherine College's Women In Islam online writing course. I am meeting such interesting souls and stretching beyond my limitations and skin. Learning and sharing and exploring new territory. And giving back - Goddess Gatherings that I will plan and schedule and announce within the next 30 days. ("C" word and I'm just DO-ing it - very good, very good, Yay!!!)

Writing - One a day. Being disciplined. Sharing and Staying OPEN and vulnerable and transcending. Planning and putting it down on paper and making it REAL. Creating my LIFE - one vision at a time.

What are you trying new in 2009?

Wishing you,

Peace & Love, Just Because,

Goddess Diana

On Turning 40

The Universe is conspiring to bring me everything I wish for. It's an AWEsome feeling. I just have to put the thought out there into the Universe and it happens. No effort required on my part. All I have to do is say YES.

12 days into the New Year and we are still driving a Lexus RX 350 thanks to the good guys at CountyLine Lexus hooking us up with a loaner while they tweak and fix our car. What a blessing!!! Everything is getting the once over as she approaches 100,000 miles. In the meantime, we love this car/mini SUV!!!

More importantly, Ginger Mama loves it. She has plenty of room in the back seat or cargo area. She's a little higher up and the windows go all the way down. I love it because you press a button and the back door opens or closes. And it's so roomy with all these windows and a sunroof.

And what an amazing weekend I have had leading up to my birthday. A 2 1/2 hour herbal compress massage on Friday by Noe at Suriya Thai Spa set the tone. Huge releases in my shoulders and back. I walked out feeling like butter, darling.

My brother, Vic and sister in law, Mama Goddess Yael and Bram and Nessy flew in on Saturday morning. We haven't seen each other in almost two years. We picked them up at the airport and they came over to meet GingerMama. We hung out for a little aAnd then we got back into the cars and dropped them off at the port for an eight day cruise. We get to reconnect on their return on Sunday. Very good!!! Very good!!! Yay!!!

And then Saturday night, we had a date night with Noah's sister, Mama Goddess Susana and her husband, Mark. We went to Lucille's Bad to the Bone BBQ Restaurant where I had this delicious Mahi Reuben. Great choices for pescatarians or vegetarians.

Noah had bought tickets for AbbaCadabra, an Abba spectacular. Oh what a blast. The singers were great. They looked and even sounded like the originals. Susana and I were out of our seats dancing and singing. Didn't get home until midnight. Tee hee!!!

Sunday - I walked 10 miles. Go Goddess!!! Go Goddess!!! Got a walk and talk at the beach with Goddess Leslie. Shopped Josh's Organic Market. Napped and jacuzzied and walked some more. Played frisbee with Noah and Ginger. Went to bed early.

I was out the door for sunrise this morning. GingerMama and I walking under the pink and orange skies above us as the sun came up. What a lovely way to start the day.

Noah hid birthday cards all around the house for me to find. It's like my own private treasure hunt. Here's one, tee hee!!!


And now, I'm off to yoga to stretch and open and appreciate.

Thank you for all the birthday phone calls and wishes and cards and Facebook messages.

I wish you,
Peace & Love, Just Because,
Goddess Diana