"The Gratitude Book Project"

I'm very excited to announce that I am a contributing author in a book all about Gratitude, which will be released today, 12/15/10 on Amazon.com!  The book features ordinary people, like you and I, sharing extraordinary thoughts, feelings and stories about how gratitude affects their lives.  The result, was hundreds of inspirational pieces, one for every day of the year, in a comprehensive and moving collection called The Gratitude Book Project: Celebrating 365 Days of Gratitude.   

Being involved with this particular project was very special to me, because the last 6 years of my life have been very challenging (will tell you more about this in later blogs ;-) ).  Simultaneously, those same years have brought the biggest leaps in my personal growth journey, that I have ever experienced and have therefore, been the most rewarding.  So, to say that I am grateful for everything in my life, positive, perceived negative and everything in between, would be a gross understatement.  I personally believe that all of us receive signs from the Universe/GOD/Creator and if we pay attention, there are always golden nuggets to discover and help us on our journey.  Well, I literally received such signs just days before I was presented with the opportunity to become a contributing author in this book.  The signs were about expressing my gratitude in a much bigger way...and so I did! 

 

I believe expressing gratitude is essential for every day living for two main reasons.  It automatically shifts your mind to a more positive, tenderhearted state of being, which then opens you up to a state of allowing.  Allowing more things to be grateful for, to enter your space.  In general, I think most people tend to forget to be grateful and don't realize what an amazing tool it can be.  Everyone seems to want more, more, more, but they don't take the time to count their blessings.  Expressing gratitude, is a wonderful way to count your blessings.  This was one of the reasons, I chose to be involved in this project.  The other reason, was the realization of the current state of affairs in the world.  With so many losing hope, I thought this book would be a great way to inspire others and what better time than NOW!  What better gift for the holidays than THIS!  The Gratitude Book Project: Celebrating 365 Days of Gratitude 

Happy Holidays to all of you!!  May you find peace of mind and heart, as well as inspiration when you need it most!

The Gratitude Book Project: Celebrating 365 Days of Gratitude gathers together more than 300 co-authors who answered the question, "What are you grateful for?"  The project is now a book found on Amazon.com.  Denice Rivera of RareGemEntrepreneurs.com is a co-author in the book.  Find out more at http://amzn.to/fbXLpN

For Those of You Who are "On The Fence" or Have Lost Hope...

Frank Schaeffer is a New York Times best selling author.
Obama Will Triumph -- So Will America By Frank Schaeffer

Before he'd  served even one year President Obama lost the support  of the easily distracted left and engendered the white hot rage of the hate-filled right.  But some of us, from all walks of life and ideological backgrounds -- including this white, straight, 57-year- old, former religious right wing agitator, now progressive writer and (given my background as the son of a famous evangelical leader) this unlikely Obama supporter -- are sticking with our President.  Why?--  because he is succeeding.  We faithful Obama supporters still trust our initial impression of him as a great, good and uniquely qualified man to lead us.  Obama's steady supporters will be proved right.  Obama's critics will be remembered as easily panicked and prematurely discouraged at best and shriveled hate mongers at worst.  The Context of the Obama Presidency, not since the days of the rise of fascism in  Europe, the Second  World War and the Depression has any president faced more adversity.  Not since the Civil War has any president led a more bitterly divided country.  Not since the introduction of racial  integration has any president faced a more consistently short- sighted and willfully ignorant opposition - from both the right and left.  As the President's poll numbers have fallen, so has his support from some on the left that were hailing him as a Messiah not long ago;  all those lefty websites and commentators that were falling all over themselves on behalf of our first black president during the 2008 election.The left's lack of faith has become a self-fulfilling "prophecy"--  snipe at the President and then watch the poll numbers fall and then pretend you didn't have anything to do with it!  Here is what Obama faced when he took office-- none of which was his fault: An ideologically divided country to the point that America was really two countries# Two wars; one that was mishandled from the start, the other that was unnecessary and immoral# The worst economic crisis since the depression# America 's standing in the world at the lowest point in history# A country that had been misled into accepting the use of torture of prisoners of war# A health care system in free fall# An educational system in free fall# A global environmental crisis of history-altering proportions  (about which the Bush administration and the Republicans had done nothing)# An impasse between culture warriors from the right and left# A huge financial deficit inherited from the terminally irresponsible Bush administration.  And those were only some of the problems sitting on the President's desk!  "Help" from the Right?  What did the Republicans and the religious right, libertarians and half-baked conspiracy theorists -- that is what the Republicans were reduced to by the time Obama took office -- do to "help" our new president (and our country) succeed?  They claimed that he wasn't a real American, didn't have an American birth certificate, wasn't born here, was secretly a Muslim, was white-hating "racist",  was secretly a communist, was actually the Anti-Christ, (!) and was a reincarnation of Hitler and wanted "death panels" to kill the elderly!  They not-so-subtly called for his assassination through the not-so-subtle use of vile signs held at their rallies and even a bumper sticker quoting  Psalm 109:8.  They organized "tea parties" to sound  off against imagined insults and all government in general and gathered to howl at the moon.  They were led by insurance industry lobbyists and deranged (but well financed) "commentators" from  Glenn Beck to Rush Limbaugh.  The utterly discredited Roman Catholic bishops teamed up with the utterly discredited evangelical leaders to denounce a president who was trying to actually do something about the poor, the environment, to diminish the number of abortions through COMPASSIONATE programs to help women and to care for the sick!  And in Congress the Republican leadership only knew one  word: "No!"  In other words the reactionary white, rube, uneducated, crazy American far right, combined with the educated but obtuse neoconservative war mongers, religious right shills for big business, libertarian Fed Reserve-hating gold bug, gun-loving crazies, child-molesting acquiescent "bishops", frontier loons and evangelical gay-hating flakes found one thing to briefly unite them: their desire to stop an uppity black man from succeeding at all costs!  "Help" from the Left?  What did the left do to help their newly elected president?  Some of them excoriated the President because they disagreed with the bad choices he was being forced to make regarding a war in Afghanistan   that he'd inherited from the WORST president in modern history!  Others stood up and bravely proclaimed that the President's economic policies had "failed" before the President even instituted them!  Others said that since all gay rights battles had not been fully won within virtually minutes of the President taking office, they'd been "betrayed"!  (Never mind that Obama's vocal support to the gay community is stronger than any other president's has been.  Never mind that he signed a new hate crimes law!)  Those that had stood in transfixed legions weeping with beatific emotion on election night turned into an angry mob saying how "disappointed" they were that they'd not all immediately been translated to heaven the moment Obama stepped into the White House!  Where was the "change"?  Contrary to their expectations they were still mere mortals!  And the legion of young new supporters was too busy texting to pay attention for longer than a nanosecond.  "Governing"?!  "What the hell does that word, uh, like mean?"  The President's critics left and right all had one thing in common: impatience laced with little-to-no sense of history (let alone reality) thrown in for good measure.  Then of course there were the white, snide know-it-all commentators/talking heads who just couldn't imagine that maybe, just maybe they weren't as smart as they thought they were and certainly not as smart as their president.  He hadn't consulted them, had he?  So he must be wrong!  The Obama critics' ideological ideas defined their idea of reality rather than reality defining their ideas-say, about what is possible in one year in office after the hand that the President had been dealt by fate, or to be exact by the American idiot nation that voted Bush into office.  Twice!  Meanwhile back in the reality-based community in just 12 short months -- President Obama continued to draw down the misbegotten war in Iraq (But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#   Thoughtfully and decisively picked the best of several bad choices regarding the war in Afghanistan(But that wasn't  good enough for his critics)#  Gave a major precedent-setting speech supporting gay rights(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Restored America 's image around the globe(But that  wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Banned torture of American prisoners(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Stopped the free fall of the American economy(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Put the USA squarely back in the bilateral international community(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Put the USA squarely into the middle of the international effort to halt global warming(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Stood up for educational reform(But  that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Won a Nobel peace prize(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Moved the trial of terrorists back into the American judicial system of checks and balances(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Did what had to be done to start the slow, torturous and almost impossible process of health care reform that 7 presidents had failed to even begin(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Responded to hatred from the right and left with measured good humor and patience(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Stopped the free fall of job losses(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Showed immense personal courage in the face of an armed and dangerous far right opposition that included the sort of disgusting people that show up at public meetings carrying loaded weapons and carrying Timothy McVeigh-inspired signs about the "blood of tyrants" needing to "water the tree of liberty".(But that wasn't good enough for his critics)#  Showed that he could not only make the tough military choices but  explain and defend them brilliantly(But that  wasn't good enough for his critics)  Other than those "disappointing" accomplishments -- IN ONE YEAR --  President Obama "failed"!  Other than that, he didn't "live up to expectations"!  Who actually has failed......are the Americans that can't see the beginning of a miracle of national rebirth right under their jaded noses.  Who failed are the smart ass ideologues of the left and right who began rooting for this President to fail, so that they could  be proved right in their dire and morbid predictions.  Who failed are the movers and shakers behind our obscenely dumb news cycles that have turned "news" into  just more stupid entertainment for an  entertainment-besotted infantile country.  Here's the good news: President Obama is succeeding without the help of his lefty "supporters" or hate-filled Republican detractors!  The Future Looks Good After Obama has served two full terms, (and he will),  after his wisdom in moving deliberately and cautiously with great subtlety on all fronts -- with a canny and calculating eye to the possible succeeds, (it will), after the economy is booming and new industries are burgeoning, (they will be), after the doomsayers are all proved not just wrong but silly: let the record show that not all Americans were panicked into thinking the sky was falling.  Just because we didn't get everything we wanted in the first short and fraught year Obama was in office, not all of us gave up.  Some of us stayed the course.  And we will be proved right.  P.S. If you agree that Obama is shaping up to be a great president, please pass this on and hang in there!  Pass it on anyway to ensure that his "report card" gets the attention it deserves.

Our World Is Not As Bad As It May Seem

I normally don't like to watch the news for obvious reasons.  First, I believe that we don't always get the complete story.  Second, I believe that we're fed, most of the time, negative news.  Although there are incredible stories of good will towards others, love enduring unimaginable trials and heroism that would make super heroes fall short, the focus is almost always on what brings the most fear.  It's almost as if a large portion of society has this fascination with wanting to know how terrible the world is, and the media provides exactly that.  Frankly, it's just plain depressing to listen to the news every day, not to mention, unhealthy!  Literally, bad for your health and well being!  I don't know about you, but I definitely want to hear more about the positive things that are happening in our world, all around us.  I choose to concentrate on what's RIGHT with our world.  

The fact is, there's plenty of positive news to go around, if you choose to look for it.  If you do, they're not so hard to find.  For instance, my WONDERFUL sister, along my AWESOME nephews are participating in the 26th Annual AIDS Walk in Los Angeles on Oct 17th, just ten days away!  She's choosing to make a positive difference by donating her time and even making it a family event by including her teenage sons.  

She started donating her time to this cause, last year in memory of a close friend.  A doctor, who mentored her when she worked at a free clinic in Hollywood and she was a young adult. Soon, the doctor was not only a mentor, but became a good friend.  Earlier this year, she reconnected with some close high school friends and found out that one of them was also struggling with the same deadly disease.  Now, she could have just felt sorry for her long lost friend and then went about her business, but she didn't.  She has decided to become an ambassador for change, by giving her time and supporting this great cause.  She is so passionate about it, after having seen the effects it has had on her two friends, that she has now engaged her sons in joining her.  What an amazing way to lead by example.  Truly inspirational!  Now, doesn't that just put a smile on your face?

If you're interested in learning how you can help my sister and her family support this great cause, feel free to follow the link below.  You can become an ambassador for change by being a sponsor, donating or joining them on the walk on Oct 17th in L.A.  Any amount donated would be much appreciated.  But why stop there?  Be an ambassador for change for a cause you're passionate about and pass on that inspiration.  Together, we really can make this world a better place.

 26th Annual AIDS Walk in Los Angeles, CA on Oct 17th

Purpose, Passion, Prosperity...

Are you yearning to find your life's purpose, live with passion
and be prosperous? Do you trust it is time for you to take
the next step in your authentic, personal journey ... for
yourself, your business, your community and the whole world?

Can you imagine what would begin to happen if we journeyed
together... with purpose, passion and strategy?

If you are a woman who inspires or wants to be inspired, mark
your calendar for a star-studded, ground breaking LIVE event
designed especially for women. It's called RISE! and happens
Oct 7-10, 2010 in Beverly Hills.

Meet like-minded women for face-to-face connections that can
make a difference on personal, professional, local, and
global levels...

Meet women like you who are accomplished and committed, world
class experts and celebrity women who are making a difference.
Have fun, make friends, and discover how you too can RISE to a
new level in your life. Truly, this experience is ABSOLUTELY
something you won't want to miss.

I encourage you to make this year the one for getting what
you want by networking with other powerful thought leaders.
https://braveheart.infusionsoft.com/go/RISE2010/KH369/ 

Is It So Hard To Support Our Sisters?

I have been extremely blessed with the best girlfriends any girl could ever have!  I tend to attract beautiful souls, who are independent, strong, caring, very dynamic and extremely supportive of themselves and each other.  I guess that's why when I come across a woman who is unpleasant, obnoxious or nasty, which is not too often now a days, it's sometimes hard for me to understand the "why".  Now, I'm not perfect and I don't pretend to be.  I have a very strong character, some may say somewhat intense, I don't tolerate bullies, have no patience for ignorance and have no problems defending myself, never have.  But I do support my fellow sisters.  I am big on the supportive home front, as well as on the inspiration and motivation home fronts.  So, when I see a woman being unpleasant or hateful towards other women or myself, it's sad, but my first instinct is to give them a piece of my mind.  However lately, meaning the past few years, I find myself looking beyond the "character", the personality of that individual and sort of tuning into her state of mind.  I know this may sound a bit strange, but it's almost as if I'm able to see their personality, no matter how harsh, loud or obnoxious, as a costume.  A roll they play, like actors do and I'm able to tap into and see their TRUE self, who they are at their core.  Well, as you can imagine, this has stopped me from saying many things I would've undoubtedly regret later.  Instead, I've been more compassionate and able communicate more effectively without being offensive, yet getting my point across, while they reflect on their behavior.  Maybe because they were expecting some kind of verbal confrontation, but they got empathy and a voice of reason instead, it makes them take a long hard look at themselves.  The point is, we are all very similar.  We want love, security, acceptance, validity, safety for our families, appreciation, etc.  As women, we need to support our sisters, not tear them down.  Put ourselves in their shoes and realize that there's enough to go around.  There's no need to be jealous, petty or insufferable.  No one can support a woman emotionally, as well as another woman who understands where she's been.  And remember that one day, you will need the support of another woman...a fellow sister.  So, if you see a woman who has what you would like in your life, bless her and then create it in yours.  Bless her and then find your own happiness.  Bless her and then bless yourself!

Braveheart Women...Inspiration in Action

If you are a woman who inspires or wants to be inspired, please mark your calendar for the launch of the BraveHeart Women Summer Extravaganza.  Learn the SHORTCUTS of how to make a difference on a personal, local, and global level...without all the stress.  Make this year the one for getting what you want.  https://braveheart.infusionsoft.com/go/extravganza/KH369/

Fear...Friend or Foe?

It's amazing how paralyzing fear can be.  You know the feeling all too well.  There's that job, career, that relationship, circumstance, opportunity you've been dreaming about, fantasizing about, envisioning.  You can see yourself positioned for a successful outcome.  It calls to you and you feel the excitement building from within.  In your mind, you can't lose!  It's your world and you're in command.  If only you had the opportunity, you would Carpe Diem (cease the day)!  You know it's coming, you just have to be patient.  Your day will come.  Someone will notice what you have to offer and give you the chance to prove yourself.  Truth is, the only person that needs to take notice of what you have to offer is you.  But you continue to go through life thinking you were meant to do more, achieve more, be more, make a difference, make your mark on the world.  Then, on one unsuspecting day an opportunity presents itself and this is precisely when you start to feel it.  Brief excitement with butterflies in your stomach at first, immediately followed by doubts and questions.  Am I good enough?  Can I really do this?  I wasn't quite ready.  Who am I to think I can have this?  Your stomach just went from having butterflies to a full knot.  You feel the knot as it gets tighter and tighter.  Deep down inside you know going for it will leave you completely exposed to all.  You won't be able to hide behind the excuses any more.  Of course you don't want to fail or make a fool out of yourself.  So, what do you do?  Most people will let go of the opportunity and choose something more practical, safe.  They will continue dreaming and will try to convince themselves that they will have another break in the near future when they'll be more prepared.  What we don't realize is that the Universe has been sending us the chance we've been waiting for all along.  The fear is like a test to see whether or not we truly wanted it.  Are we going to honor our words, our thoughts and desires with action?  Or are we going to continue asking while ignoring the chances given to us?  Alice Walker once said, "Women have to summon up courage to fulfill dormant dreams".  This means taking action in spite of the presence of fear.  We tend to fear most, that which can have the greatest positive impact in our lives.  Is it because at the core we're truly afraid of our greatness?  Of what we're capable of achieving?  What would happen if we decided to let go completely?  I mean, let go of the idea or need to control everything.  Actually use the fear to get us out of our comfort zones and let it guide us, as to where and what to dive into next.  How would that feel?  Would you feel free?  How would it change your life?  When you have a strong passion in your heart, it cannot be quieted down, not even by fear.  It's a greater calling that yearns to be fulfilled.  You have the choice to either follow it all the way, having faith that it will lead you to the outcome you've been envisioning all along or you can ignore it and never know the impact it could've had in your life.  So, ask yourself, how do you live your life and what is fear to you?

The Power of "I Am"

Today, I was listening to one of my Philosopher's Notes on The Power of Your Supermind by Vernon Howard, while I headed down to the VA Hospital for minor Dermatology surgery.  I love listening to these notes, because they instantly transport you to a more peaceful place of learning and higher consciousness, no matter where you happen to be physically or mentally.  Vernon Howard discusses some of the mistakes we make when speaking and how our minds' interpret what we say.  For instance, we constantly say things like, "I am sad, depressed, annoyed, angry, upset, stupid, etc.  In that instant, we are identifying our TRUE self (who we are at the core) with an emotion, usually a negative one.  So, in essence, we are telling ourselves that we ARE in deed that emotion, not that we're merely feeling the emotion.  It would be best to state that you are feeling that emotion or that the particular emotion is present, rather than identifying yourself with the emotion directly.  This was really an eye-opener for me.  Not something we really pay attention to, but something that can have a very powerful effect on our subconscious.  It's almost like stated negative affirmations we're not even aware of, but consistently apply day after day, month after month, year after year.  So, without any conscious thought, we're actually programming our mind in a negative way.  Wow!  Just the thought of it is pretty scary, but it really doesn't have to be.  We can't fix what we don't know.  Now that we're consciously aware of it, we can do something about it and turn it around into some positive programing.  Next time someone asks you how you are doing or you want to share with someone how you are doing, think about how you will express yourself, before you express those emotions.  Try something like, I am Amazing, I am Incredible, I am Fabulous, I am a Genius, I am Talented, I am Love!

Braveheart Women...Inspiration in Action

If you are a woman who inspires or wants to be inspired, please mark your calendar for the launch of the BraveHeart Women Summer Extravaganza. Learn the SHORTCUTS of how to make a difference on a personal, local, and global level...without all the stress. Make this year the one for getting what you want.
https://braveheart.infusionsoft.com/go/extravganza/KH369