​I'm currently enrolled in the mindbodygreen course 'Guided Visualizations' by Emily Fletcher. Visualization is a powerful tool that many professionals, particularly athletes, intuitively know is the key to a positive outcome. 

I initially began with the video to help put a person at ease when interviewing, hoping it would help ease my anxiousness whenever I have to pitch a story idea.

At first I wasn't sure if it was working, but I have been noticing lately subtle changes in how I feel. I feel less afraid overall, which I think is in part because in the visualization she says to see yourself walking into the room and knowing you belong there . This in itself caused a big shift in how I view myself and my place in this world.

I stopped playing the interview video and decided today I was ready for the one that really scares me - public speaking. Eep! I have tangled with my fear of public speaking for years. What I know about this fear is it's the fear of being seen and not being liked. On a deeper level, it's the fear of confrontation, because I'm afraid I'll say something someone won't like and they'll want to confront me about it.

When I sat down to play the video I wasn't as nervous as I expected I would be. Yes, even the idea of visualizing public speaking makes me nervous. This tells me that perhaps the first visualization was doing more than I realized.

Emily began by talking about when she was nervous to give a talk at Google Headquarters, and her husband said something to the effect of, "Stop thinking of it as having only two possible outcomes - success or failure. There's a whole range of points on the scale in between!"

This shift in perspective released so much weight off of me. I could see how this more open perspective applies to so many things in life. More often than not, we do a good enough job. There are hardly any times when we do such an atrocious job that we feel we totally bombed. And yet, we approach most things with the expectation of either knocking it out of the park or blowing it in epic proportions.

And when we don't have a slam dunk success, we automatically deem it a failure. But what about all the shades of gray in between those two black and white points?

Before this, I really was fixated on two ways my public speaking (and most things in my life) would go - absolute success or absolute failure.

That doesn't leave a lot of room for growth. It doesn't allow me to start at hey I didn't pass out from nerves, that went better than I thought! It doesn't allow me to start where I am and then say, you know what, that was good enough. I got up there, I did my thing, and it was fine.

​I know it's not exciting, but sometimes aiming for "good enough" is just what we need to calm our minds and stop the anxiety train. It feels great to know we nailed something and did the absolute best we could, but starting with "good enough" or even "I made it through" might be what we need in order to get to, "That was the best I've ever done!"

I'm going to try using this new approach when I feel overwhelmed by the fear and doubt that tends to creep in when I'm putting myself out there. I believe it could help take the pressure off, and when there's no pressure things tend to unfold as they're meant to.

​Breathe in the energy of a new day.
Breathe out all that's behind you, all that's done.

Today is a day you will be supported by the whole Universe.
Today is a day all your hopes and dreams will be heard by the Divine.

You are not alone today.
You are loved and supported by all that keeps this world alive and moving forwards.

Your deepest desires are held in the hands of your Creator, 
where they are protected and nourished as they are brought to life.

Today is a new day, full of new possibility.
Today is a day of your own design.

What you think about today will create the world around you.
Think about what you love.
Think about what brings you joy.
Think about what makes you feel alive.
Think about the flowers blooming, the birds soaring, and all that is well, right outside your window.

Today is a new day.
​Breathe in the energy of a new day.
Breathe out all that's behind you, all that's done.

I wish you many blessings and moments of joy and love today.

​Melissa

​Have you ever planted the seed of a flower? How did you know it would grow?

The seed has no brain. No eyes. No map to the surface. There's no switch you flip that says, "And now you are in soil so you will grow!"

The seed just knows it's in soil. But what is it that understands this? Again, there is no brain. How is it the seed understands that the pull of gravity is where roots go? How does it even sense gravity? What is it sensing this with? And how does it process this and react accordingly? What if the seed misunderstood and grew sideways? 

What if it didn't understand what roots are for, and it didn't absorb nutrients from the soil? Worse still, what if it came thisclose to sprouting, but it gave up because it believed the darkness would go on forever?

The idea that a seed has no idea how to become a flower seems illogical.

We know the seed's roots will grow down and it's head will reach up. We know the soil pressing upon it isn't suffocating or crushing it, it's bringing it to life. Even though we can't see it, we know it's growing, we know all is well. We know that in a single moment it will break free of the darkness and spring forth into the light. No matter how long it takes, we keep watering it, because we know there are divine forces guiding it.

There's a magic to the whole process, a magic we rarely think about, we simply take it for granted.

And yet, when it comes to our own dreams, desires and lives we lose all belief in the magic of this world. That very same divine energy that guides a growing seed permeates us too. It has to. How else could we go from being one single cell to a dynamic and complex being with a head, arms, organs and so on?

We do not live by different rules than the natural world. We aren't separate from nature. We are as natural and divinely guided as every flower on this earth. We are created from that same magic and we are the magic. It's in our DNA. It's in our life force. So why do we doubt that our dreams have their own divine forces guiding them to the surface? 

When things we want don't blossom right away we tend to fall into despair and doubt. The more we doubt the more we give up on the seeds growing within us. We turn away from them, refuse to nourish them, and believe there is only barren soil within us. We neglect our inner garden and allow it to be taken over with the weeds of fear, anger and disappointment.

But it's okay. No matter how deeply they have taken root, all weeds can be ripped out. The soil can be replanted with love, happiness and excitement. And even though we can't see it happening, we will know, our dreams will blossom. We ourselves will blossom.

​All we must do is trust in the divine forces that guide everything and continue to follow our intuition. Our intuition is the same thing that guides a seed's roots down and its head up. As our seeds grow within we can nourish them with positive beliefs, loving thoughts and encouraging feelings. 

That's all we must do. Trust in the magic. Believe in what we can't see. Nourish the good stuff. Keep the weeds away.

And when there is that moment, that single moment, when it all breaks free from the darkness of gestation and springs forth into the light, we might take a moment to marvel in the magic. To give gratitude to the divine forces. To give gratitude to ourselves for bringing forth roses and orchids in a world that too quickly expects weeds.

Sometimes you're tired. Sometimes you just can't get your enthusiasm up. Sometimes you just want to sit back and say, "to hell with it all."

Feeling low, tired, grumpy, sad, are all perfectly natural things to feel. There's nothing wrong with you. There's nothing you need to fix in your energy or your spirit.

All you need is to accept how you feel. Accept it fully. Love it completely. Let it be a part of you, and let it show you what it wants to show you.

Sometimes we want to smother our darker feelings with positive thoughts and intentions. Sometimes we become afraid of our anger, sadness, guilt, fear, and angst. We believe that to radiate negative feelings will only bring negative things into our life. But the anger is there for a reason. The sadness is there because a part of us has been denied. The only way to transcend the feeling is to surrender to it. To love it and let it show us what it's trying to show us.

To be spiritual does not mean to be at peace and zen all the time. 

To be spiritual means to love and accept yourself fully, no matter where you are, and no matter what you're feeling. 

To be spiritual does not mean you will never again feel a negative emotion. 

To be spiritual means you accept all your emotions as valid aspects of yourself.

To be spiritual means you allow all your emotions to guide you, like currents in a river.

And just as you are a dynamic being, in an ever changing river of feelings, so is everyone around you. The more we accept the validity of all our emotions, from light to dark, the more accepting we are of all the emotions of those around us.

I hope this week ahead is full of many delightful surprises for you.

Warm hugs,

​Melissa

​Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, it's perfect.

You are whole and complete, just as you are.

You are as loved, cherished, and divine as the flowers in the grass and the birds in the sky.

There is nothing a flower must do in order to be loved, cherished and divine. It just is. Just by being, it blossoms in harmony with the whole Universe.

You too are blossoming in harmony with the whole Universe. All the feelings you have, from light to dark, are a part of your symphony. Just by being you, the music of the Universe deepens and expands.

​Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, it's perfect.

You are where you're meant to be. You are who you're meant to be.

You are loved and cherished, just as you are.

I wish you a wonderful day.

Warm hugs,

​Melissa

​I had stumbled across HU on a bulletin board and I couldn’t deny a powerful feeling that it was important.

​Furthermore, I felt a continual urging to meditate on HU every day for 40 days in a row. I was intrigued but also conflicted. How could I give up that much of my precious time to sitting and chanting? What if nothing happened and the 40 days was a waste? What if EVERYTHING happened and I was so overwhelmed I couldn’t handle it? What was even causing this urging? What was beyond me that was sending this calling to me?

It was this endless stream of questions that got me to begin my 40 days of HU. It was like looking at a guide book for an exotic land and knowing that if you traveled there it would forever change you. The desire to fulfill my curiosity propelled me on, and I had no idea then that this really would be an adventure. I was having my first experience with adventures in cosmic consciousness, and rather than board an airplane, I would sit each day and travel to the furthest reaches of my soul.

Each day of using HU I received profound insights that changed the way I viewed myself, this world, the Universe and even the concept of life itself.

Near the end I had one that opened me up in such a way that prepared me for the BIG one, the one that changed everything. In this initial moment of expansion, I continually heard the question in my mind during meditation, “What makes you amazing?” I tried to answer with what I felt were positive and honest things, such as I feel I’m amazing because I’m intelligent. I feel I’m amazing because I’m adventurous. I feel I’m amazing because I’m funny. And so on.

But I was receiving a distinct NO back, a tangible feeling that I was not tuning into the real answer, and these answer were based on a purely human perspective. I needed to go wider, and it was then that I began to open up to everything. I felt myself go deeper into my meditative state, but it was a paradox, because the deeper within I went the more my mind and soul opened outwards. I stayed within my body, I was aware of my body, but I was also one with the mountains and sky, the rivers and the forests, and all the while I was being shown that THIS is what makes me amazing.

I am amazing because I AM the mountain. I am amazing because I AM the night sky. I am amazing because I AM the fast flowing river that travels across continents.