Giving Thanks...

Being thankful everyday is a blessing, and in each moment there are many things that we can be grateful for. The world opens up to us when we live in a space of gratitude. When we appreciate and express gratitude, the universe glows a bit brighter and showers us with even more blessings.

There is always something to be grateful for, even when life appear to be challenging at times. When times are tough, whether we're having a bad day or stuck in what may feel like an endless funk, it can be difficult to take the time to feel grateful. YET, that is when gratitude can be most important. If we can look at our lives, during periods of challenge, and find something to be grateful for, then we can transform our realities in an instant.

There are blessings to be found everywhere. When we are focusing on what is negative, our abundance can be easy to miss. Instead, find what already exists in our lives that we appreciate and notice the change we see in our world. We start to notice one blessing, and then another.

When we constantly choose to be grateful, we notice that every breath is a miracle and each smile becomes a gift. We begin to understand that difficulties are also invaluable lessons.

The sun is always shining for us when we are grateful, even if it is hidden behind clouds on a rainy day. A simple sandwich becomes a feast, and a trinket is transformed into a treasure.

Living in a state of gratitude allows us to spread our abundance because that is the energy that we emanate from our beings. Because the world reflects back to us what we embody, the additional blessings that inevitably flow our way give us even more to be grateful for. The universe wants to shower us with blessings. The more we appreciate life, the more life appreciates and bestows us with more goodness

Thank you to my wonderful clients, my family, and my friends for all your loving support. I am very blessed to have you be a part of my life. I love what I do, and I'm thankful everyday for my daily blessings...

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Peace & Joy,

Maria Haswell

Dia de los Muertos

Dia de los Muertos
D a y o f t h e D e a d
A look at how we can celebrate life...

From the beginning of time, man has felt the need to explain the mystery of life and death. Many civilizations and cultures have created rituals to try and give meaning to human existence. Death does not have to mean the end of life. It can be seen as a new phase of life in which the spirit is freed from the body. This concept is at the center of the Mexican ritual known as "Dia de los Muertos", or Day of the Dead.

They honor the memories of friends and family members by telling stories, decorating gravesites and creating altars. While the special day is reflective, it is not a day of sadness. Instead, the day exists to celebrate the lives of loved ones and to lighten our fear of death with lightheartedness. Using the rich traditions of Day of the Dead, you can honor the lives of loved ones in a meaningful and loving way.

Day of the Dead dates back some 3,000 years to the traditions of native Mexican people.

The essence of this beautiful ritual is to lovingly and happily remember the dead relatives, their life, and in this way, give meaning and continuity to human existence. The Day of the Dead is a grand celebration of life itself.

Let's honor those we know and love in the spiritual realm and say a little prayer for them. Remember all the fond memories and take the moment to celebrate Life!

How to Create an Abundance Altar

How to Create an Abundance Altar
Vastu Altars To Increase Abundance & Prosperity

1) Make sure the area is clean and your surface is against a northern wall or window, or in the north sector of your home or office.

2) The colors gold and green should be used on some pieces on this altar.

3) The water element in the northeast can be fresh flowers in colors that correspond to the altar. You can use a vase that is clear or lightly colored.

4) Use a green or gold candle in the southeast, or an oil lamp.

5) Use stones or crystals in the southwest in green or gold colors. You can use a statue of Lakshmi, the goddess of abundance, a plant, or anything from nature.

6) For the air element in the northwest, use a standing wind chime, incense, a fan or a feather.

7) You can hang a green colored Austrian leaded crystal on a red string in increments of nine inches over the center of your altar to keep the abundance you desire moving in your direction.

8) Add a dish or small plate in the center of your altar to act as a place for your offering. Use gold or green.

9) You can add a Shree Lakshmi Yantra to your offering dish for an extra boost of positive energy or a Ganapati (Ganesh) Yantra to remove all obstacles to your abundance.

10) On an unlined piece of paper that can easily fit onto the Offering Tray, add a handwritten word, an Angel Card, or some other symbolic representation of the abundant feeling you would like to receive from the Divine.

11) Include a Personal Symbol in the center, in back of the offering tray of your altar. It can be a statue, photograph, collage, or picture that inspires feelings of abundance.

This is reprinted from Altars of Power and Grace: Create the Life You Desire by Robin and Michael Mastro.

For more information visit VastuCreations.com

Money Energy

How you perceive money has much to do with how much you have and are able to create. While it's not healthy to be preoccupied with money or lust after it, it is important to appreciate its value and the positive things it can do for your life. And, like anything, the more you appreciate something, the more you invite that into your life. So, if you express appreciation and gratitude towards love, health, and money, you'll attract more of those things into your life. Likewise, it you have a negative attitude towards such things; you'll attract less of those things into your life. So, if you're constantly worrying about the lack of money, you'll constantly have money woes, even if you earn a good income.

Be conscious of your thoughts towards money. Do you feel like you deserve to have money? How were you raised to deal with money, were you always told to save and never spend, or were you always told there was never enough?

There is energy in everything and money is no exception. The energy of earning manifests itself in the money, and the energy is exchanged through spending. Therefore, it's important that we not only make money, but that we spend it as well. Anything that is static will never reproduce and that includes money. Still, you want to use your money to not only take care of your needs, but to help others as well. Be as generous as you can with those less fortunate and you'll be circulating your money so that more comes back to you.

Introduction to Mediumship: Connecting with your Spirit Guide 8-Week Workshop

Course Outline
In this fun and interactive workshop, you will learn how to blend with the power of the spirit, and work within this power to obtain clearer and more concise messages from your spirit guides. You will be inspired to push the boundaries of your own mediumship skills, whether you are a beginner or an advanced student. You will learn that you are capable of more than you realize, utilizing your own intuition. And, in your day to day life, you will begin to enjoy all the wonderful guidance of your spirit guides as a result of your stronger connection with them.

Embracing the Spirit is about more than mediumship - it's about awakening and nurturing the spirit within, and appreciating that we are all part of the same divine family, bonded by spirit.

This workshop will include tutorials, lectures, discussions and demonstrations. Although the classes will be centered on speaking to your spirit guides through your own mediumship development, we’ll be looking at other ways of receiving spirit communication and all the wonderful and diverse ways you and the spirit world can come together.

I will be on hand to help, encourage and guide you in your development and will offer plenty of creative feedback and useful advice on how you can improve, expand and build on the unique abilities you already possess.

This is an 8-week workshop full of fun, laughter, music and inspiration, in a warm and supportive environment that will encourage you to be yourself. I look forward to working with you and helping you with your growth.

Dates:
8-Week Workshop: Every Fridays
Week 1: October 2
Week 2: October 9
Week 3: October 16
(No workshop on 10/23)
Week 4: October 30
Week 5: November 6
Week 6: November 13
Week 7: November 20
(No workshop on 11/27)
Week 8: December 4

Time:
7:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Location:
(Address provided when you register)
San Ramon, CA 94583
Phone: 877-542-1192


Registration:
Please register by contacting me via RSVP through meetup or email me by September 25th. (4 spots left)

Payment:
The cost of the 8-week workshop is $200. Please bring cash or check (made payable to "Maria Haswell") on the first day of the workshop. Credit card payment is available only via PayPal prior to the event (There is an $8 PayPal service fee). Please contact me at mariahaswell@comcast.net if you would like to arrange pre-payment, or discuss alternative payment methods.

Happy Friendship Day!

Did you know that the first Sunday of August is Friendship day?

Friendship Day is a day to nurture relationships, new and old.

Start the day by getting in touch with some old friends. Start early. Phone calls, emails, Ecards, are great tools. See if you can make plans for lunch today, or some other day (soon).

Then, catch up to some of your current pals and buddies. Make sure to do some interesting things with them before the day is through. As you go through the day, be ever vigilant to spot an opportunity to make a new friend. Finding new friends today, is a real feather in your cap.

One thing is for certain...... if you put your all into the spirit of Friendship Day, you will have a great, great day.

Happy Friendship Day to all of you!

Trusting the natural flow of Energy

The most difficult time to be generous is when we ourselves are feeling poor. While some of us have experienced actually being in the red financially, there are those of us who would feel broke even if we had a million dollars in the bank. Either way, as the old adage goes, it is always in giving that we receive. Meaning that when we are living in a state of lack, the very gesture we may least want to give is the very act that could help us create the abundance that we seek. One way to practice generosity is to give energy where it is needed. Giving money to a cause or person in need is one way to give energy. Giving attention, love, or a smile to another person are other acts of giving that we can offer. After all, there are people all over the world that are hungry for love.

Sometimes when we practice generosity, we practice it conditionally. We might be expecting to "receive back" from the person to whom we gave. We might even become angry or resentful if that person doesn't reciprocate. However, trust in the natural flow of energy, and you will find yourself practicing generosity with no strings attached. This is the purest form of giving. Remember that what you send out will always come back you. Selflessly help a friend in need without expecting them to return the same favor in the same way, and know that you, too, will receive that support from the universe when you need it. Besides, while giving conditionally creates stress (because we are waiting with an invisible balance sheet to receive our due), giving unconditionally creates and generates abundance. We give freely, because we trust that there is always an unlimited supply.

Being aware of how much we are always supported by the universe is one of the keys to abundance and generosity. Consciously remember the times you've received support from expected and unexpected sources. Remember anyone who has helped you when you've needed it most, and bless all situations that come into your life for the lessons and gifts they bring you. Remember that all things given and received emanate from generosity. Giving is an act of gratitude. Plant the seeds of generosity through your acts of giving, and you will grow the fruits of abundance for yourself and those around you.

Moving Into A New Phase

Every one of us lives a life mirrored by individual and changing experiences, perceptions, needs, and desires. We connect with others, becoming friends and confidants, most often because they share something with us, such as an interest or need. But as time goes on there is change, and the bonds that brought you close to a treasured friend may not be enough to sustain the relationship. You may find your lives have gone in wildly different directions and you no longer share the same aspirations, or you may have changed on an energetic level. It is not unusual in such a situation to find that the comfort you found in the other person has vanished and that you have trouble relating as you once did. Outgrowing a friend can be confusing or painful, but it is a natural part of one's personal growth.

You have a right to choose to surround yourself with those people who understand you, are helpful and compassionate, and put you at ease. Months or years into a friendship, you may find your friend no longer seems like the same person he or she once was. The change may have been within them, but may also have come from within you. Moving on does not mean that your past shared experiences were not meaningful or important to you both, but rather it acknowledges your needs in the present.

Ending a friendship can be difficult. You may not feel comfortable explaining your reasons for doing so. Even so, you can still be kind, respectful, and considerate, and simply state that you can no longer devote time to the friendship. When you have made the conscious decision to let go of the relationship, it will most likely happen naturally.

The people who are or have been a part of your life each taught you something. Some friendships are long-term while others are brief. In all relationships, however, it is important to embrace changes and to let go of regrets. While you may outgrow the need to maintain a friendship with someone who was once very special to you, that person will nonetheless always occupy a place in your heart.