Oprah asks Life's Big Questions

Christmas is just a few days away.  Can you feel the excitement and awe in the wonder and beauty of the approaching celebration.   In an electronic world that moves quicker than we can think I believe it is worth your consideration to take some time out for you and just breathe. Five minutes out of your day gives you the personal gift of your own breathing. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. It is just that easy and just that simple. Find a place to sit and focus on your breath. The results can be very calming to your day.  




Oprah Winfrey's Super Soul Celebration of life episode  delivered just that opportunity  with 42:02  minutes to contemplate and breathe in life's big questions. I thought it was so brave. I thought it took courage to ask and I genuinely believe that her motivation was Love based. 


Oprah asks the leading spiritual thinkers of our time Life's Big Questions.
They all answered with their own truth and in their own way. 



The first question that Oprah asks her guests in this episode is this:

What is YOUR Definition of God?



Here are their answers:

~ Wayne Dyer: "God is the highest place within each and every one of us.  It is
    our divine self."

~Michael Singer: "The source of you."

~Debbie Ford:  "To know that I am one with a energy a force greater than myself."

~Devon Franklin:  "The Alpha and the Omega. A friend and confident. He is my 
  buddy. He is a lover of my soul."

~Marianne Williamson:  "A all encompassing love that is the source of all. The 
  reality of all, and the being through which I am."

~Llewellyn Vaughn-Lee:  "He is my beloved.  My most intimate beloved. My friend
  the one I look to in everything. I would not try to define him because only God 
  knows God."

~Eckhart Tolle:  "God is beyond all the forms of life but also dwells in every form
  of  life as their essence.  God is both beyond and within."  

~Gabrielle Bernstein:  "The ever presence essence of love."

~Mastin Kipp:  "God is love."

~Marie Forleo:  "Everything in the creative force"

~Caroline Myss:  "God is law. God to me is mystical law. The order of things.  The  
  negotiating principles with mystical laws is prayer - that is what make them 
  intimate.  A miracle is when God bends these laws for you."

~Iyanla Vanzant:  "All that is.  Everything, everything. Breath. Life.  It's everything.
  God is everything.

~Deepak Chopra: "God is the evolutionary impulse of the universe.  God is infinite  
  creativity.  God is infinite love, infinite compassion, infinite caring."



Here were some of the other questions Oprah posed:

* What is the difference between spirituality and religion?

* What is the soul?

* What role does prayer mean to you?




WATCH THE FULL EPISODE ~CLICK HERE~OPRAH WINFREY




What I  took away from these questions was that each of these seekers had found their own way.  All so different and yet the constant thread of Love weaving through and connecting their responses.  We all have to find our own way..




I liked Iyanla Vanzants prayer to God that she shared.  It goes like this...

Help.
Help me now.
Thank-You.






Oprah commented on Marianne Williamson prayer from her book, Illuminata.


MORNING PRAYER

Dear God,
I give this day to You.
May my mind stay centered on the things of spirit.
May I not be tempted to stray from love.
As I begin this day, I open to receive You.
Please enter where You already abide.
May my mind and heart be pure and true,
and may I not deviate from the things of 
goodness.
May I see the love and innocence in all
mankind, behind the masks we all wear and
the illusions of this worldly plane.
I surrender to You my doings this day.
I ask only that they serve You and the healing of
the world.
May I bring Your love and goodness with me, to 
give unto others wherever I go.
Make me the person You would have me be.
Direct my footsteps, and show me what You 
would have me do.
Make the world a safer, more beautiful place.
Bless all your creatures.
Heal us all, and use me, dear Lord, that I might
know the joy of being used by You.
Amen.






Jean Houston when asked "What the world needs?"  answered with this thought.
"The world needs the sense that we are all in it together."


All in it together...







I share this video by Jeff Sullivan it is  quietly beautiful... 









Pastor Joel Osteen's Full Sermon:

"The Power of "I AM"










Have a beautiful day,



Photo: PKM



joy,


Rena

www.talktotheturtle.com





  





   
  

Fun sayings, positive affirmations and powerful quotes

We may make our future by the best use of the present.  There is no moment like the present.

~Maria Edgeworth (1767-1849)
  English children's author




The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart.

~Helen Keller (1880-1968)
  American author, political activist and lecturer




A word after a word after a word is power.

~Margaret Atwood  (1939 - )
  Canadian novelist, short story writer and poet




Old age ain't no place for sissies.

~Bette Davis  (1908-1989)
  American actress




This is one of my favorite positive affirmations statements:


You cannot bring what you want to you if you are feeling stress. Stress or any tension at all is something you have to remove from your system.

You must let the stress go - it is the only way you can bring what you want. The emotion of stress is saying strongly that you do NOT  have what you want. Stress
or tension is the absence of faith, and so to remove it all you have to do is increase your faith!

~Rhonda Byrne
  Creator of The Secret








Here is an excerpt from Deepak Chopra M.D. book, Creating Affluence ~ Wealth
Consciousness in the field of all Possibilities

"Y" stands for youthful vigor. We experience health when out identity of who we are comes from reference to the self.  When we identify with objects, whether these are situations, circumstances, people or things, then we relinquish our energy to the object of reference.  As a result, we feel lack of energy and vitality.

When our identity comes from the self, then we keep our energy to ourselves. We feel energetic, we feel powerful, and we experience youthful vigor.






A lovely quote by author Louise L. Hay ~ An excerpt from her book, Heart Thoughts

MY LOVE IS LIMITLESS

We have so much love in this world, and we have so much love in our hearts, and sometimes we forget.  Sometimes we think there isn't enough, or there is just a small amount. So we hoard what we have or we are afraid to let it go.  We are afraid to let it out.  But those of use who are willing to learn, realize that the more love we allow to flow out from us, the more there is within us and the more we receive. It is endless and timeless.  Love is really the most powerful healing force that there is.  Without love we could not survive at all.  If little tiny babies are not given love and affection, they wither and die.  Most of us think we can survive without love, but we cannot.  Love for ourselves is the power that heals us. 
Practice as much as you can..

One of the bonuses about loving yourself is that you get to feel good.








Have a beautiful day,



Photo:  'return visit'  PKM



joy,



Rena


www.talktotheturtle.com


  

The treasure of revelation breathes in the ocean

It all started out so innocently.  I saw a video shared on Facebook  of some  porpoises here in  Howe Sound, British Columbia.   Howe Sound, where this rather large group of porpoises were photographed jumping around is fifty minutes from downtown Vancouver, B. C. Canada.  This was special footage because there have not been a lot of dolphins  in that sound because of the pollution that had built up over the years.  There has been a concerted effort from the various different environmental factions  and apparently their efforts to clean up the water so the fish would  come back for the porpoises to feed on  is paying off.

As the year  draws to a close and I am  tidying up my computer  I noticed that I had accumulated some West Coast  whale videos -  all close up and personal.  Kayakers and boaters out in the water viewing these magnificent mammals in their natural habitat, the ocean.  The treasure of my revelation in viewing these videos is the mere fact that these whales are free.  Whales love their freedom.  

I feel if  you want to really understand what a whale is then visit them in their natural habitat.  My heart starts thumping with such emotion because I am so grateful for these  whales that are cruising around in the cold waters off the West Coast of British Columbia.

Orcas approach boat.






Freedom is important and I wonder what will be saved for the next generation of planet earth lovers.  If we push right past through our fear and embrace the kindness of self acceptance as a place to rest and reflect we may find the answer.
I believe if we are kind to ourselves then it invites the possibility for us to be kind to whales too. 



Santigold live at BBC radio. 












Gray whale, Broken Island off of Vancouver Island, B. C.










Tourists out  for a little fishing trip off Tofino B.C. meet a Humpback whale. Flying  and free. 







Maybe seeing a whale move through the ocean is something for you to add to your life list of things to do?  This Sooke B. C. kayak rental company ended up with some orca killer whale footage, that will make you sit up.  






Florence and the Machine, Live at KEXP, ( Seattle WA)
Cosmic Love








 Ocean footage of a dog in a boat  watches pod of orcas. The impact of awe still abounds.





I guess I never realized how much I like seeing whales in the wild. I am so grateful to live here on planet earth.  We are caretakers of this planet's amazing gift of waters and mountains to explore.  It all comes down to love. 


The xx-angels from their album Co-exist






Have a beautiful day,



Photo: PKM



joy,


Rena


www.talktotheturtle.com

Your own unusual bestowal of self love

I believe the freedom of your mind is quite possibly the most important thing to wish for at any given opportunity. You have met people who have become dreary and downtrodden by their jobs or financial situations.  I am sure you have also met the other group who have jobs that create a sense of security. Are they any  happier?  A false sense of security can be as much of a lifestyle obstacle as a  situation that spells a certain  "lack of"  in our lives.   Life's obstacles are an opportunity to open the door to our own unusual bestowal of self-love.

If I were to draw this with a crayon it would be a picture of you with gratitude in one hand a happy vision in your  other hand.  A drawing of a heart  with the words self love would be worn on the t-shirt as the main focal point.  
Self love = gratitude & happy vision.

By focusing on your vision, the possibility of success increases.   That desire far out there still in the thought energy realm,  already has your own self-love of acceptance  woven into it.  Focus on your vision and regardless of the day to day tests, never give up. Never give up on yourself by accepting where you are today but bask in the lightness  of knowing that each day gets you closer to your vision. 


This is what I felt what so uplifting about the ending to the movie Shawshank Redemption.  The hard work done.  You do not have to be in prison to feel locked up and put away in your mind.  We have all had the opportunity to serve time in the solitude of our own sadness. We can do that with all the freedom in the world by our very own self loathing.  So what are you waiting for?  Grab a dream and set the nose of that metaphorical boat of yours into the wind. Don't give up. 

This is the question. At the crossroads of your decision making either get busy living or get busy dying... 









Giving yourself permission to receive the get out of jail mind card is something to look forward.  When you step back into your life of gratitude, you will realize that you can  seize opportunities and turn them into your own.


Making it count...





Remember the obstacles can show up and you have the opportunity to transform these temptations in life into a resource that will help.  Maybe like Kendrick Lamar's  poetically  tough song....a reflective treatise on the perils of alcoholism and peer pressure. 










Poet, Marie Howe:

PRAYER

Every day I want to speak with you.  And every day something 
more important
calls for my attention - the drugstore, the beauty products, the luggage
I need to buy for the trip.
Even now I can hardly sit here
among the falling piles of paper and clothing, the garbage trucks outside
already screeching and banging.
The mystics say you are as close as my own breath.
Why do I flee from you?
My days and nights pour through me like complaints
and become a story I forgot to tell.
Help me.  Even as I write these words I am planning
to rise from the chair as soon as I finish this sentence.

~From The Kingdom of Ordinary Time (Norton 2008)






Your vision never leaves you.  Your gratitude never wavers. No matter what is going on around you, your resolve of self love shining through with joy and enthusiasm. The moving waters calm again as you breathe in deeply. Love is the greatest gift of all... 

Shake it out.....







Have a beautiful day,



Photo: 'look up' PKM



joy,


Rena


www.talktotheturtle.com

Fun sayings, positive affirmations and powerful quotes:

Age is a matter of feeling, not of years.

~George William Curtis (1824-1892)
   American author and editor





Woman is the masterpiece.

~Confucius  (c. 551BC - 478BC)
   Chinese philosopher





Life is denied by lack of attention, whether it be to
cleaning windows or trying to write a masterpiece.

~Nadia Boulanger  (1887-1979)
   French conductor and educator



One is not born a woman, one becomes one.

~Simone de Beauvoir  (1908-1986)
  French writer







This is one of my favorite positive affirmations statements:


Most people don't realize how much passion they put into what they don't want.  When you speak to a friend and you tell them all about an "awful" situation, you are putting passion into what you don't want.  When you react to an event negatively, with the response that it is "terrible", you are putting passion into what you don't want.

You are a beautiful passionate being, so make sure you direct your passion wisely.

~Rhonda Byrne
Creator of "The Secret"






Here is an excerpt from Deepak Chopra M.D. book, Creating Affluence~Wealth Consciousness in the Field of all Possibilities


"X" stands for expressing honest appreciation and thanks to all who help us. We must never pretend appreciation, but if we feel it, then we must express it.  The expression of gratitude is a powerful force that generates even more of what we have already received.








Author Marianne Williamson, an excerpt  from her book, A Woman's Worth.


Oppression of women is far from over, and often women themselves are the ones who make the world even harder for other women.  But this phenomenon will fade away as female-oppressing females become healed of their self-hatred.  On the other side of this jungle is a new and glorious day on earth, when our daughters will not be judged wrong for their passions or held back because they are bursting with such power, strength, and love.
Children help.  Sunsets help.  Good men help.  The beach helps.  Reading about women who have been great in their field helps.  Meditation helps. Prayer helps.


          

Have a beautiful day,

Photo: Almost there - Paul Murphy

joy,

Rena

www.talktotheturtle.com

Why wait for Spring, do your beauty thing now.

While the majority of the fashion world is gearing up for the approaching winter months Paris Spring fashion shows for 2013 are in full swing.  French couture is where Paris Fashion houses take the cue from the current economic conditions and with a forward looking eye create a theme for trends that will arc over several months if not years to come.  Couture fashion is a statement of the beauty of where we are today but it creates a history and story telling board when we look back over every decade.  I  really enjoy watching the moving art. This is what my personal take is on the tall gazelle-like models that float as mannequins down the runway, making the statement for the Designers. 

Couture is an artistic commentary on where we are as an evolving civilization.  It gets translated down to the mass merchandisers and street fashion which you and I participate in whether we are aware of it or not.

How you get dressed every day tells the world who you are, or who you want them to think you are.

I thought the Dries Van Noten and Rick Owens collections were quite special.  The overall trends are for sheer fabrics weighted with heavier fabrics and structure.  No easy feat to translate that into a fashion world expression/trend of where we are headed.  Very, very artistic.  Bold color still plays a key role in our recession bound world economies. All of these expressive designers have clearly had some exposure to the chakra colors and the effect of what color plays in the subtle energy healing realm. You can check out all the videos at STYLE.COM link.

The key question being asked:   What is modern? 

Rick Owens highlights: Spring 2013 Ready-to-Wear










Many years ago when I was picking up the pieces of my health and glueing myself back together, I discovered a book that really helped me get back on track with my body.   I worked with the Callan Pinckney exercises and read her book 30 Days to a Beautiful Body as a personal challenge.  This is long  before there were computers to write testimonials about products.  This harkens back to the day of the eight track for music and VHS for videos. Somewhere in the last eight years this book got tucked away.  I pulled it out of the bottom row of my library and googled Callan Pinckney only to discover she passed away in March 2012.  With the modern tool of email I was going to write to her and thank her personally for the book and the tremendous difference it made in my life.  When I clicked onto Amazon and read the many positive testimonials on Callan's exercise products I saw I was not alone.  Although these exercises would fall under the no-impact concept of exercising, they produce amazing results.  I only did ten minutes everyday of  these isolated exercises  from her book.  Every few days I would increase the amount of repetitions as directed in the book. I am not going to wait until Spring to start with my 30 day countdown exercise. 

I found a dated video that shows a partial clip of Callans 10 Years Younger in 10 Hours and have posted it here to inspire you.  Can you guess by the colorful leotards what circa  this video was made?

10 Years Younger, Callan Pinckney video:

If you are looking for something to treat yourself  to for Christmas this year that  will start your inner beauty program off on the right foot for the New Year, I highly recommend these products by Callan Pinckney.  Long after she has gone we still have her amazing contribution to our world with her concept of  women and men liking their own bodies.  Sweep your temple and enjoy the riches of health. 

Have a beautiful day,

photo: golden blue

joy,

Rena

www.talktotheturtle.com

http://www.style.com/video/fashion-shows-by-season/

Give rise to your solemn declaration

Along the way of getting your life understandings maybe  consider taking a little time out for this question.  What does that future You look like in your mind?  Another way of framing this question could be, "So who are you when you get there?"   Your  positive daily solemn declaration that keeps you smiling and the  path clear ahead of you is creating space for the answer.  We sometimes get ourselves into  places  where there clearly is not enough room for our whiskers to move.  Undaunted by our curiosity, we find ourselves stuck and then we have to slowly and carefully back ourselves out of the hole or the dead end that we were so sure we wanted to explore.  This is, I believe,  how we learn on the pathway of life.    




Through a patient and compassionate practice of self-love, I feel that I am working with these questions a lot more these days.   The story of Freeing Valentina  inspired the thought in me to make some extra space for my future visualizations. 



This was the question  I posed to myself.

What  was I  going to be giving back once I got there?


Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician Van Morrison whose music can be described as transcendental  offers these lyrics, "Did you get healed?" and I thought hmm... there it is again.   Another great question.













What is your great question?  The freedom to live your life after the relief of being untangled from some of your toughest life lessons that got you very tangled. I realize that this is a play on words that speaks volumes about Valentina's  joy. What practices are you going to be able to invite into your life as positive reflections of you.  On a daily basis.  What makes you smile.  What makes you howl with laughter.  At the most quiet level of reflection what is it in your heart that you need and desire the most in order to be happy with your life.   The joy is knowing we all have the freedom to find our own way.  





   






Have a beautiful day,



photo:  autumn park


joy,


Rena


www.talktotheturtle.com