My mother has a dog, his name is Cody, and today Cody was diagnosed with cancer. Cody is not just a dog to us, he is a member of our family and we love him very much. Cody has a tumor on one of his kidneys and the cancer has spread to his liver. The prognosis is not good. We will not be treating him with chemotherapy. We are however looking into alternative treatment options.
We have had Cody and his littermate Cassidy since birth (pictures will be up some time on Christmas Eve). We also had the parents of Cody and Cassidy. Rocky, their father, was my dog and Nikki, their mother, was my fathers dog. Both Rocky and Nikki passed away within 6 months of each other about 3 years ago. We’re just not ready to lose Cody too.
There is a quiet knowing deep in my core that is telling me not to give up hope. Even though Cody is 11 years old and he’s already had a long and happy life, I just can’t shake the feeling that it’s not time yet. Maybe it’s my wishful thinking, maybe it’s a Divine message. I’m an intuitive, but I’m too attached to the outcome to get a clear message so I don’t know. I do know that this message feels very different from the me that keeps telling God you just can’t have Cody. He’s ours and we’re not ready to give him up yet.
I’m also a level two Reiki practitioner and on Saturday December 27th at 10am CST I am organizing a healing and prayer session for Cody, I will be giving him a Reiki session starting at that time. All that I ask of all you animal lovers out there is that you take a moment at that time to say a quick prayer for Cody. If you are a distance healer and feel that it would be appropriate to send him healing energy at that time as well I would greatly appreciate it.
As a coach I teach people to have happy and fulfilling lives. But having a happy and fulfilling life doesn’t mean that your life is perfect or that you don’t ever experience pain. Things happen, the ones we love die, and sometimes it just sucks.
Our dog Cody was at the vet today, he hasn’t been eating normally since Novemeber and his liver enzymes have been very high. So, he had an ultrasound. Cancer. He has a tumor on his kidney and the cancer has spread to his liver. How do you see any beauty in the world when you have to look into the eyes of someone you love so much and know that you may only have days left with them.
I keep telling myself that he’s a dog, there are people out there who have lost children, friends, and parents. He’s a dog and he’s not supposed to live as long as I will. He’s 11 years old and he’s had a long and happy life. But the fact is we love him, and when you love someone and they’re sick it simply hurts like hell. I’m not saying it’s the same thing, I am saying that it hurts. He’s a member of our family, and he’s my mom’s baby boy. He’s our Cody Bear. Those of you out there who see your pets as family will understand.
So what do you do when your heart just hurts and you wonder if anything in life is worth this kind of pain? Here’s what I’m doing. Read the rest of this entry »
Christmas is days away and the New Year is just around the corner.
New Year’s Eve is one of my favorite days of the year. I love to spend it in the company of close friends and family, and I love watching the brand new year begin. I’ve always loved what bringing in the New Year stands for. To me, it’s a clean slate. An opportuinity to start fresh and create something new and exciting.
The fact is 2008 has been a rather tumultous year for a lot of people. For me personally, it has been a year of great change and personal growth. The biggest change of all has been starting my coaching practice and now being able to coach full time. The past year was sometimes stressful, often times fun, and most of all it was an adventure.
Currently I am re-reading Doreen Viritue’s book The Lightworker’s Way. Doreen Virtue is definitely one of my favorite authors, her books really spoke to me when I was first getting started on my spiritual path several years ago. In fact, I believe The Lightworker’s Way was the first of her books that I read.
I remember when I read the book the first time, I felt so inspired by her story, and at the same time I felt so sad because I wanted to be a lightworker and at the time I didn’t think that I was. According to Doreen Virtue, a lightworker is “someone who volunteered, before birth, to help the planet and its population heal from the effects of fear.” Each lightworker has their own specific purpose to fulfill on Earth, and no one else can fulfill that purpose for them.
I so wanted to be a lightworker. I felt that it was just another dream that I wanted but couldn’t have. It worked for her, but it wouldn’t work for me. I just wasn’t that special or talented. I read her book and even though I didn’t believe at the time that I would ever be a lightworker, a seed was planted in me. I began reading every book of Doreen Virtue’s that I could get my hands on. Even though I didn’t believe it possible at the time, I had hope that I would someday be able to help others the way that she had helped me.
It seems that everywhere I turn lately I see the mentality of lack. There aren’t enough jobs, people don’t have enough money and people aren’t spending enough money. The media’s coverage of the economic situation in the U.S. has simply increased fear and made things worse. It is a fact, the U.S. is in economic downturn. The question is, do you choose to participate?
I want to tell you a story about my adorable dog Zoe. She is sweet and lovable, and most of all she makes me laugh. Now around me and my family, and in her regular routine Zoe is happy and friendly. However, if one object or person, enters Zoe’s environment that is unfamiliar, Zoe will, without hesitation, attack.
Zoe is fear aggressive. Anything that Zoe is afraid of (which is anything or anyone new) Zoe will attack. She attacks the lawn mower, cars, and the boxes with the Christmas lights that we brought in from the garage last night. When she first arrived at my house from the local animal shelter she attacked the arm chair, the cats, the other dogs, and my father’s feet. I literally kept her attached to me at all times, her leash was attached to my belt.
I officially adopted Zoe in February of 2007 after having fostered her for the Austin Sheltie Rescue for 6 months prior. Zoe was around 2 years old when I got her and all I know about her was that she had been left in the overnight drop area at Town Lake Animal Shelter in Austin. No one knows what Zoe’s life was like before she came to me. The shelter described her as unpredictable and in a way they were right. It’s difficult to tell what Zoe will attack. What is predictable is that she will attack anything that she is afraid of.
There is a teaching that can be found in all major religions, and is generally know as The Golden Rule. In the Bible, particularly in the story of The Good Samaritan, Jesus says to “love your neighbor as you love yourself”
In case you’re not familiar with the story of The Good Samaritan, a Jewish man is robbed and left for dead on the side of the road. One Jewish man walks by him and does nothing. A second Jewish man walks by him and does nothing. Finally, a Samaritan walks by and helps the man and takes care of him. This is inspite of the fact that the Jewish people and the Samaritan people didn’t get along.
The point of the story is to treat all people with the kindness that we show ourselves, regardless of whether we agree with their beliefs and actions or not. However, I think that there is a key to this teaching that is often missed. At least I’ve never heard it talked about. It seemes to be presumed that if you are supposed to treat others well and you’re supposed to treat others as you treat yourself, then you must be treating yourself well to begin with.
The holiday season is in full swing and Christmas Day is right around the corner. Now, I have always loved the song “The 12 Pains of Christmas” by Bob Rivers because we all seem to have moments like these during the holidays. Particularly if you put up your own Christmas lights like we always do. However, this year, it seems the holidays are particularly stressful.
Now, Christmas time is by far my favorite time of year. I love the decorating and the cooking. I enjoy giving gifts to my family and friends and I wait all year long to listen to the beautiful music and see the houses all lit up with twinkling Christmas lights.
Growing up I always felt like Christmas time was magical. Yes, that probably had to do with stories of Santa Claus and gifts that mysteriously appeared sometime between Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. There was more to it than that though. It was the traditions that were built and the memories were made. It was quality time with my family and the fact that people always seemed a little bit happier to me. Most importantly, I always felt more connected to God during Christmas time, something that I used to find quite difficult.
Life is short. It’s a fact that we all know but is so easily forgotten in our day to day lives. This past summer a friend of mine died in a car accident. It was a head on collision. She was killed along with the driver of the other car. We will never know why she was driving on the wrong side of the road. It was late and it was dark. Alcohol was not involved.
She was in her early 20s, as was the driver of the other car. Their whole lives were in front of them until this fateful night when it was all cut tragically short. My friends parents lost their only child. I do believe that their is a higher plan at work, however I make absolutely no attempt to understand. I can’t understand it from the limited vantage point of my life. It makes no sense to me.
The point of this story is not to bring sadness or to attempt to understand death. It is simply to remind you that no one knows when their life or the life of a loved one will end.
Your Divine purpose is essentially what you were born to do. It is a way of being or something you do that you can do better than anyone else. No one can fulfill your Divine purpose as well as you can. It is your choice to fulfill your Divine purpose or not. That is your free will. You, however, will lead a much happier life and have a much stronger impact on the world if you choose to learn and live your Divine purpose.
Your Divine purpose can be fulfilled through a variety of ways. It’s not necessarily associated with a particular job or religious affiliation, although those things can support you in fulfilling your Divine purpose. Your Divine purpose is fulfilled in your way of showing up to the world. No one can tell you what your Divine purpose is, you have to come to that on your own.
I want to tell you a story about a woman who is very near and dear to my heart. Her name is Chris and she is my mother. My mother radiates Divine love. That is her purpose in the world. I doubt that it is anything she ever decided upon or gave much thought to. My mother’s Divine purpose simply comes naturally to her.
How many times has this happened to you? You set a goal, you make a plan to reach that goal, you take action, and then… nothing.
I grew up in a family that attempted for over 10 years to succeed in a well known MLM. When I was 18 I joined that same business. I was exposed to some of the best personal development resources available. Time after time I set goals that were never achieved and the lifestyle I wanted elluded me.
I had the commitment, I had the dream, and I did the work.
