Month: August 2022

Energy Healing . . . Real or Imagined

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One Form of Energy Healing at work

This question comes up all the time because human beings don’t want to believe in what they can’t see.

But energy healing is very real.

As a Reiki Master, I can tell you that I’ve seen the results in my patients for myself.

Still, even as many forms of Reiki as there are, there are many forms of energy healing . . . Reiki being one of them.

This is because energy healing is simply using the mind-body connection that already exists in everyone as a means of healing the energy we use to fix abnormalities in our bodies and even in our lives.

Our energy weakens as our thoughts weaken. Sadness, worry, stress, and all negative thoughts, emotions, and experiences cause this to be so. Unfortunately, our state of mind effects our bodies and everything around us. We wonder why things are going wrong all the time. This is why . . . truthfully. Whatever we’re thinking or feeling, the universe is responding in kind, so if we’re thinking about fear, then the universe sends us more to be afraid of.

If we’re worried about getting sick, then the universe sends us illness of some kind because we already asked for it. It doesn’t matter if we’re thinking we DON’T want something. The idea of simply thinking or worrying about it is telling the universe this is what we want.

And if those are the rules so many others have followed through the millennia, then those are the rules I’ll follow and have. So should you.

The key is to keep our energy as strong as possible so we can also keep our bodies and our life situations healthy and comfortable.

The energy healing traditions can be trace back through the centuries along many different lines – from the Chinese healing traditions dating back to the third millennium BC to the ancient Indian traditions which they call Prana . . . or breath of life.

Many people have heard the term, “Chi”, before simply because it’s most used on different television shows, but Chi is what the Chinese used to describe this same life energy that the Indians referred to as Prana.

So how do energy healers tap into this Chi . . . how to you?

Truth is, you already do simply because you’re breathing, walking, and working.

The trick is to control it so it either heals you or keeps you healthy enough to heal others, if that’s something you want to do. This healing can be for the body or life situation, believe it or not. I’ve done both and you can, too.

There are many places you can go to learn . . . many books you can read . . . many teachers you can subscribe to online.

One place I found online is a website called, “Energy Healing For Everyone.” Literally, anyone can go there and join in order to learn how to keep their own energy intact.

I’ll also share with you the one place I have been going to online for quite a while now. It’s called the BioEnergy Code and it something I believe in because it incorporates meditation, which I’ve been doing for almost 30 years.

And, if you’re looking for someone who can teach you and who lives close to where you do, then look online. There are more than you might think.

But I wanted you to also know of the other kinds of energy healing that are available today. Since there are so many, I’ll give you the top few according to Psy-Minds.

  1. Acupuncture – works to balance the Chi up and down the body
  2. Chakra Healing – works with the chakra system
  3. EFTY/Emotional Freedom Techniques – combines needle-free acupuncture with mind-body medicine.
  4. Polarity Therapy – based on the energetic principles of attraction, repulsion, neutrality.
  5. Quantum Touch – uses the practitioner’s breath to intensify the treatment.

Those are just a few that appeal to me, personally, but there are so many more you can easily find on your own.

The bottom line is just to take that first step in your own energy healing journey.

And trust . . . in the process . . . in the universe . . . and mostly in yourself.

You can do this!

Skippy’s Destructive Evening – All on Foot 😊

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How healthy roses look!

This is a true story told to me by my dad about my Uncle Skippy, who I really admired for his drawing skills . . . mostly beautiful women . . . and his ability to feed the squirrels by hand while sitting on the back porch and for his knowledge about the tree growing in his backyard . . . that had berries my brother and I were told to stay away from, but Uncle Skippy ate them all the time and knew they were good.

There are so many good things I can say about this man who was never married, didn’t own a car, and lived with his sister and brother-in-law most of his life.

But this article isn’t about the drawing, or the squirrels, or the berry tree.

This is about one man’s escapade on a single late afternoon that lasted into the evening . . . as far as anyone could tell.

What does this have to do with gardening, you wonder?

Just wait for it . . .

I’m not sure if I was even born yet when this happened. I’ll have to ask my dad that part, but when my dad told me about this, I was hysterical.

I knew my uncle didn’t drive and this may be one of the reasons . . . possibly THE reason . . .  why he didn’t.

Apparently, as the story goes, one afternoon Skippy walked to the bar across the street and drank for hours. I was told it was only 4 or 5, but who knows? The only thing anyone knew for sure was what happened when all was said and done . . . plus, what they were told about the “process”. 😉

As the legend goes, when Skippy was done drinking for the evening he could hardly walk, but he managed to get as far as the curb . . . where he stumbled and fell onto the road.

He felt around to find a way to stand up, but he couldn’t locate where the curb was. Instead, he dragged himself across the road to the curb on the other side where he finally managed to pull himself back to a standing position . . . because of the curb his DID find.

Because of where he lived, there was a center median that split the road and protected the homes on the other side. Skippy apparently didn’t realize where he was in his drunken haze so when he crossed the median and reached the other side, he fell again . . . another curb.

Since dragging himself to the other side of the road worked before . . . he did it again.

Back in those days, traffic was nothing like it is today, so Skippy wasn’t worried about cars coming. It might have helped if a car did drive by because he might’ve had help, but that was another time . . . and no one came.

On the other side of this second street, Skippy pulled himself up again and started walking the rest of the way home.

Who knew grass cold be so dangerous?!

When he crossed the sidewalk, he apparently miscalculated something . . . like whether the house he was facing was where he lived . . .  or not?

Regardless, when Skippy’s feet touched the grass he stumbled again, but this time he landed in the neighbors rose bushes, which he destroyed then from his weight crushing them down.

But . . . since dragging himself worked all night so far . . . he did it again, destroying the rose bushes even worse in the process, as well as the lower garden on the other side.

What about the thorns? I wondered the same thing, too and learned he was badly cut up and bruised. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

So . . . again with dragging and crawling. He dragged himself out of the gardens, across the neighbor’s lawn, and toward his home.

Once he finally reached his own home and got to the stairs, complete with railing, Skippy was able to pull himself up on to the porch.

But . . .it was a porch and he still had to make it to the front door.

He didn’t.

Skippy was still in a drunken stupor and exhausted from all the dragging and crawling. As a result, he fell backward, down the stairs, landing on his own front yard where he stayed and slept until the rest of the family found him in the morning.

Are you seeing the gardening part now?

But the story isn’t over!

You can imagine that all the roses, smaller flowers, and neighbor’s front lawn had to be replaced and repaired.  Lowes and Home Depot didn’t exist in those days, so this work had to done by getting grass seed from the local hardware store . . . believe it or not . . . and flowers from a local nursery or neighbors or start them fresh from seeds or clippings.

Obviously, the neighbors were NOT too happy when they woke up that morning and saw all their hard work to beautify their yard . . .  gone.

If this were to happen to you, or me today, I believe the first step would be to take pictures of the damage and file a police report. The second step, for some of us, would be to go to the aforementioned stores, get replacements for the plants and grass, then do the work ourselves to save money.

Saving the receipts in case they’re needed for a potential court case, of course, would be required, too. (People today are ‘sue-happy’). A court case today would probably be blown up to include all kinds of silliness.

Back then, these things were handled amiably between neighbors, as they were in this case.

And so, the legend of Skippy’s evening adventure lives on!

Personally, I prefer to remember the drawings, the squirrels, and the berry tree in the backyard. 😊

Pit Sets or Sectionals?

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Sectional with accent pillows

Pit Sets or Sectionals . . . What’s the Difference?

None! There isn’t any difference.

You see, back in the 80s we called those big, cushy, comfy sofas with all the different pieces that connect . . . Pit Sets. Today we call them Sectionals.

It’s just the name that changed, but not the idea . . . not the product . . . has remained the same since they were created.

I started thinking about it and did some research. (I’m a research nut.)

When I looked back to learn how they started in the first place I was surprised to find out that sectionals were actually created by the British during the Victorian era, roughly 1837 – 1901, for the same reason we enjoy them today. And because they were so easy to move, they were adapted for the soldiers on the battlefield when the colonists fought the British.

Soldiers? What? Go, figure!

Apparently, the British, who created them in the first place, didn’t want to give up the luxury and comfort they had in their own homes, so they moved them from camp to camp.

Hhmmm . . .

Now that I think about it . . . this might be part of the reason they lost the war. And thank heaven they did, or we wouldn’t have the freedom to enjoy the luxuries we have today. 😊

I bought my first “pit set” in 1983 and still have it with me in New Hampshire, believe it or not. It now shows its age, with the cat clawing and dog chewing over the years, and that’s why it’s downstairs. ☹

But sectionals, as they’re now called, are a very popular form of comfort for so many people. They’re designed to stretch out on and relax . . . maybe even sleep, like my mother-in-law used to do whenever she and my father-in-law would visit for a week each year.

She didn’t want a bed. She just loved sleeping on the sectional.

Sectionals have definitely gotten more expensive since 1983, but there are still some places where you can find them for comparable prices in today’s dollars. Places like Wayfair have higher-end sectionals, but they also have very attractive sales.

Then there’s Pottery

Barn, that you might not think of as a place for furniture, but Pottery Barn sells all kinds of things for your home. These sectionals are more costly, but it depends on what people like . . . what they’re shopping for.

Some sectionals, today, like the LoveSac Sactionals, include power recliner, power hook-ups, phone chargers, and more. Best of all . . . in my mind . . . are the washable slip covers over every piece of furniture in the group. Like I said . . . it all depends on what you’re looking for.

Plus . . . you can get sectionals for outdoors, too! Now, that’s something to look forward to. Lounging outside with friends and family on cushy comfort that’s even created to protect your furniture from the elements . . . or maybe just the rain. 😉

Most times, these outdoor versions are available at the same places as the living room versions, which makes it easy to find them online.

And there’s always your local furniture stores where you can walk in and see them for yourselves . . . sit on them . . . test them out. 

I just wouldn’t advise sleeping on them. 😉

My whole focus with this . . . and all my articles . . . is to offer ideas on ways to make your days relaxing and your living . . . comfortable.

Relaxing On the Water

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Family on pontoon

Ever since I was very young my family spent our free time in the summer enjoying our 16’ Glastron Tri-hull open bow boat.

No . . . I’m not telling you to go out and buy a boat, though  . . . 😊

The thought of it does bring back many fond memories.

I remember water skiing, fishing, and the best part of all . . . driving the boat across Lake Erie to the shores of Crystal Beach Amusement Park, which is in Canada, and just floating on the water while we listened to the screams of the park’s patrons who chose to ride the big roller coaster that day.  It was called the Cyclone and boy oh boy . . . did it ever live up to its name!

But I digress, as I so often do.

I also remember my dad driving the boat down the Niagara River to Strawberry Island . . . it was shaped like a strawberry. We never found strawberries growing there. ☹

My brother, always the brave one . . . and a little crazy, too . . . would water ski on the river even though the current was strong enough to carry a person all the way to the end where the river flowed over Niagara Falls. Thankfully, we were always far enough away to avoid such a tragedy and . . . since we both knew how to swim quite well . . . even if my brother happened to fall, he could get himself to the shore or to the boat and be picked up.

Me? As much as I love to ski, I only skied once on the river and that was because my brother was calling me a baby . . . or some such nonsense. I don’t fully remember why I did it, but I know I only did it once.

But through the years, as we got older . . .  and went into our separate, adult lives . . . the boats got bigger, and the experiences multiplied – along with the memories.

Boats have always been a large part of our lives because of the comfort, the relaxation, and the ability to do so much more than we could if we were simply stuck on land all the time.

Mainly, our time on the water today is spent fishing and relaxing. Being somewhere where no one can find us . . . except the boaters around us . . . and no one can call us. It’s peaceful, serene. Listening to the wildlife around us and catching fish . . . and releasing them . . . is one of the most pleasant experiences I’ve found over the years.

Through the years, while my brother’s boats got bigger, ours got smaller. That’s because we only needed a 14’ fishing boat to meet our needs, but my brother needed a larger fishing boat so he could take the guys out with him.

Today, all of our main waterway is on the French River that runs through Ontario, Canada from Georgian Bay to Lake Nipissing. That’s because my parents built a family cottage up there decades ago, and it’s become a place of wonder every time we’re there.

Along the way my family started talking about pontoons so we can relax even more.

Actually, it was my mother who originally wanted the pontoon because she suffered from multiple sclerosis for most of her life and wasn’t as mobile as she used to be. We all started looking, but still don’t have one. Then . . . my mother passed away in 2014 and the idea ended up on the back burner until recently.

The cottage is rented to others throughout the warmer months and many people on the river are using pontoons. It would be nice to have one up there for the renters and for us, too.

Some of the newer pontoons, like the Barletta Series, are fabulous, but cost more than we can afford. Still, there are many who are looking for pontoons and are blessed to be able to enjoy this fabulous innovation in pontoon boats.

The rest of us tend to look on places like Amazon for used pontoon boats, but the truth is that Amazon carries all the accessories for fixing up or sprucing up a pontoon you might already own but no “luxury” pontoons.

So . . . the next best thing is to simply check online for used pontoon boats that are closest to you and choose whatever most appeals to you. I have to be honest, once again, and let you know that I was able to find some nice pontoons on eBay.

I like the idea of pontoons because they’re very stable when you use the better ones . . . because they have a floor that’s built on top of the two metal tubes called pontoons. With this type of construction, you can walk around and enjoy yourself no matter what you’re doing on the water, be it fishing or enjoying friends. It’s just a much more pleasant experience.

Again . . . I’m not trying to get you to buy a pontoon boat. Not many of us can afford it, myself included, but if you ARE so inclined, I’m simply sharing my own thoughts with you about another way to live comfortable while enjoying the outdoors.

Reiki Is for Everyone!

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Healing hands

What is Reiki? Oh, you know. . . on a spiritual level you do know.

You’ve seen the word . . . wondered about it . . . maybe even looked into it a time or two.

A few of you might have learned it through classes given by a Reiki Teacher, which makes this article a moot point, but for those of you who have only reached the wondering stage, let me teach you a little more.

The word Reiki is actually made of two terms, since it began in Japan . . . as far as anyone can tell. Rei refers to “God” or a “Higher Power. Kei mean our “life force energy” or “aura.”

Reiki is a form of energy healing that’s performed by channeling the universal healing energy through the hands. It’s as old as time, since no one really knows exactly when this started or how people learned to do this. We only know for sure that the form of it, Usui Shiki Ryoho that was founded over 100 years ago, began in Japan after being discovered by Mikao Usui. It was later brought to Hawaii in 1937 by Hawayo Takata Sensei, then passed on from master to student throughout time.

When I was first introduced to Reiki, back in the 1990s, I learned it was also believed that this is what Jesus was using when he was healing the sick during his travels and that he learned it during the missing years of his life as we see in the Bible. This might be speculation, but it does make sense. Especially once you learn how Reiki works.

Enough history for now, I think.

Unfortunately . . . Reiki is a mystical practice, so you never really see what it does until you learn from a teacher and start using it. But if this is something that interests you, there are more Reiki Teachers than you might imagine.

There are even classes you can take online, like those through The International Center for Reiki Training, and tools you can purchase online to teach you, like the Pure Reiki Healing Mastery Program, though how the attunements are performed to activate the flow of energy is beyond me. I’ve only taught it in person so my students can feel the immediate effects . . . and so I can see they’re all right with it.

It is a different feeling for some, while others might not feel anything for a few days, but everyone feels a change of some kind. In my case, I felt the energy flow right away, and not just in my palms, but through my fingers and up my arms. For my husband, he felt something different a few days later when he started meditating without doing it himself. That scared him enough to stop him from ever taking another class and sent me on my own journey to the master level. Strangely, though, my husband ended up being as strong of a healer as many of the masters I’ve known.

When your heart and mind are both fully vested in the process, then anything is possible. That’s because it’s always the INTENT that matters.

However, no matter how much the healer tries to direct the healing energy to a specific part of the body, (without ever touching the body itself), the universal energy will go where it knows needs the most attention. So . . . although you might be intending for the energy to heal a person’s leg, the energy might feel something in their chest instead and go there. This is one of the reasons all the healing is done through the aura. It’s a matter of trust for both the “patient” and the healer. Sometimes people aren’t that honest about what hurts or how badly . . . but the energy always knows.

One good thing, though, is that part if the teaching is to use this energy to scan a person’s aura and “feel” an area that is too warm or too cold compared to the rest of the body. Those temperature fluctuations are a tell-tale sign that something is wrong in the part of the body. The first thing the healer knows to do it to equalize the aura temperature before beginning the healing on those areas that felt “off.”

Again . . . this is how I was taught and how I teach my students.

But healing isn’t the only thing Reiki helps with. I also learned to use it to protect  . . . well, everything.

I use it to protect people, my home, our vehicles, our pets, and other people’s homes, cars, and pets, too . . . but only when they ask. It has to be a two-way street. Just like learning Reiki in the first place, the student has to give the teacher something in exchange for the lessons and the attunement, which starts the energy flow in the first place, then increases the energy capacity with each following attunement.

How many are there, you’re probably wondering?

Well, when I was first learning there were 4 attunements to the master level. But about 10 years later a call went out to all the Reiki teachers to cut the training down to 3 in order to train more healers because the world, as a whole, was entering a critical time in history and the universe sent out a “feeling” to the more seasoned masters that this had to be done . . . it was needed.

And, so, we all complied because by then, we were feeling it to.

Who are these “seasoned masters” you might wonder? I honestly don’t know. But as Reiki healers, we know enough to trust . . . each other . . . the universe . . . and our own instincts.

So, the bottom line is that if Reiki is something you want to learn, I strongly encourage it for everyone. Healing each other is as important as helping each other.

And healing seems more the perfect was to do both.

**Interesting enough, the whole time I’ve been writing this, I’ve felt the energy flowing right down to my toes. No wonder I’ve been having trouble typing. 😊

Do Container Gardens Have to Match?

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Maybe . . . maybe not . . .

Every year, like clockwork, my girlfriend and I go shopping in May to get plants for our gardens.

Cathy is always trying to match the flowers, so the colors look “right” in her container and ground gardens.

Me?

I’m just looking for bursts of color everywhere . . . like when you’re at a carnival and overwhelmed by the sights, colors, and sounds. Of course, the only sounds we hear are the ones coming from whatever wildlife is chatting in the woods. (We both live in the woods.) 🙂

But . . . I digress.

Our favorite place to go each year is Lowes’s Lawn and Garden, which is part of the big Lowe’s hardware store. The ladies there get used to us mighty quickly because with Cathy and me calling to each other across the garden area, it becomes a comedy show that everyone gets involved with.

That’s because Cathy and I have had a long-standing dialogue going over the to-match-or-not-to-match question.

This year Cathy was all about red and yellow while I quickly filled my baskets with one flower from each color pallet. In other words – something red, something blue or purple, something yellow, something orange, and always . . .  always . . . sweet alyssum which is white.

I love sweet alyssum for the scent that permeates the air the minute I walk out the front door and it’s perfect for the spiller part of the container garden formula.

What’s the formula you ask?

It’s simple: Thriller, (something tall that catches the eye for height), Filler, (something to fill the middle and move the eye lower), and Spiller, (something to “spill” over the edge of the container and move the eye downward). This gives the person looking at the container a full picture to enjoy.

I never have to worry about green because . . . well, it’s everywhere. The leaves, the stems, the buds before they open. And this time, I chose spikes for the center which were also green, but some years I choose giant begonias, or geraniums. It all depends on what’s available at the time we do our shopping.

Which reminds me . . .

Back to shopping. 😉

So, here I am with my basket filled and ready to go while I’m listening to Cathy and two of the saleswomen laughing and joking all the way on the other side of the floor and I’m wondering, “How much has she picked out,” knowing she hasn’t even started yet. It happens every year.

I follow the laughter and see Cathy, standing at the entrance to the garden center with nothing on her cart. (At least she got the cart).

She sees me and assumes I’m getting impatient, but I’m not. This is exactly what I expected. Believe it or not I look forward to this shopping spree every year because Cathy is always fun.

So, I walk over to see what she’s thinking about as she sees my cart is already full and she tells me she’s thinking about red and yellow. No surprise though. She’s usually obsessed with red, white, and blue, but since she painted her antique fire hydrant red and yellow, I kind of expected her to gravitate to those colors.

Together, we walk through the store, and I watch as Cathy stops at everything she sees in red or yellow and places it in her cart. She asks me each time how they look together, we discuss it, and sometimes she goes all the way back to put something she’d previously picked up back on the shelf where she got it. 🙁

By this time, though, not everything she put in her cart was red or yellow. She keeps saying the words, but when she grabs something in a different color, it’s just because it was pretty.

My point exactly . . . colorful is the way to go.

In her cart, I see red and pink begonias, (ok, she got some red), then yellow calibrachoa . . . or tiny petunias . . . (there’s the yellow!) . . . and orange calla lilies.

Hhmmm, orange. OK. Mix red and yellow together. I get the attraction.

But I didn’t say a word.

She also grabbed regular petunias in different colors, including red, but the yellow ones hadn’t arrived yet, so she ended up with purple, red, and white.

Back to the red, white, and blue. I kind of expected that. She’s very patriot.

Finally, after spending an hour at Lowe’s collecting the flowers Cathy and I came for, we’re ready to check out. Since I had previously put my hanging baskets together, I was only shopping for the two matching pots, Grecian urn style, that sit on the step to my front porch.

But Cathy shops for her front railing pots, hanging baskets, (usually pre-made), mailbox garden, well garden, and whatever else she grabbed just because she liked it that goes wherever she decides later.

Once Cathy checks out, everything is loaded into the back of my truck and we go for coffee to relax, talk about our purchases, where things will be planted, and whatever else comes to mind.

In my case, I bought for the Grecian urns this time, so there was no planning involved. I’d already done that before I picked her up. But Cathy always gets so much that she now has to figure out where at least half of it will go, even though she started the day with a red & yellow color scheme in mind. (I found out later that she went back for more that night.)

Last phase of our annual flower spree . . . taking her back home.

Every year it’s the same. We unload the plants and place them in the general area where Cathy thinks she wants them to go. The plants she’s not sure about, but liked, will go on the side until she figures is out. (Hence, the later trips for more.)

And I go home and immediately plant both Grecian urns.

So . . . you’re wondering what the answer is about container gardens matching or not.

Mine do because I have two urns on the step to the front porch and two hanging baskets. It’s my personal choice. But I have neighbors who have a bunch of container gardens lining a walkway and every pot is different. Still looks enticing.

My personal opinion . . . and it’s just an opinion . . . is that when you’re creating a grand entrance to your porch, then the containers on either side of the stair should match, even if you have more than one stair. The containers on each stair should match even if the flowers are different from the previous stair. It creates a more pleasing entrance for your guests.

But for the entrance along a pathway of any kind, it doesn’t matter what you plant in your containers. It makes the walk along the path more enjoyable for the person walking it, however short or long it might be.

And if you can’t afford to spend a lot on flowers every year, then mix inexpensive statues between your pots to add more flair to your path, even if it’s just the path to your porch.

Opinion time over . . .

Even though Cathy and I both have two different philosophies about choosing and planting our gardens for the season, it doesn’t matter. Cathy’s gardens, including her containers, always look beautiful. And we’ve had another fun shopping trip together.

And some day she’ll realize she doesn’t have to plan a color scheme. She never sticks to it anyway.

But I’m not holding my breath. 😉