Alana Sheeren, words + energy

Oracle Sunday: Be Here, Now

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From The Enchanted Map Oracle Cards by Colette Baron-Reid
From The Enchanted Map Oracle Cards by Colette Baron-Reid

This card is a reminder that we cannot live in the past nor in the future. They are ghost lands. The only place we are alive is in this moment, right now.

The past holds memories both beautiful and painful. We can spend a moment there but then we have to come back to now. Longing for what used to be keeps us as stuck as defining ourselves with our victim stories. We can’t live there anymore.

The future – a place full of hopes and dreams and fears – is just as ephemeral. Keep dreaming, keep taking action towards those dreams, but don’t live there either.

Live here. In this moment.

Be present with your crying child or your dying parent or your excitement, your joy, your hunger. Be with whatever life is handing you. Breathe into it and know that you have the tools to stay in it, to grow through it, to fully experience it.

Let the lessons of the past inform your present. Let the hopes for tomorrow guide today’s choices. But above all else be here, now.

If you find yourself escaping your life on a regular basis, it might be time to dig a little deeper into why. What’s wrong with what you’re experiencing now? What do you want instead? What’s one little baby step you can take today toward that desire? Will you take it?

Here are three simple ways to come back to the present moment if you find yourself checking out.

1. Breathe deeply and engage your five senses. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you taste? What do you feel against your skin?

2. Doodle, draw, or color in a coloring book. This is a great way to bring yourself into this moment, even if “art” isn’t your thing. Don’t try to figure it out in your head. Instead follow your impulses with no attachment to what the final picture looks like.

3. Do something physical. Dance it out. Shake it off. Do some pushups or a sun salutation. Wiggle your body. Roll around on the floor with your kid or your cat. It doesn’t matter what you do. The point is to get out of your head and into your body.

Once you’ve found yourself back in the present moment and before you re-engage your mind and move on, ask yourself a simple question. Something along the lines of What do I want to do now? or What does my body want right now? or What can I do next that will keep me in this moment? Whatever comes to you is fine.

Repeat the process as necessary. Try to enjoy it. This is it. This is what we have. Now.

Card copyrights belong to their respective authors, artists, and publishers, and are used for example purposes. I encourage you to purchase the deck(s) that speak to you and get to know them on your own.

P.S. Want some help remembering to be here, now? Check this out. So fun.

Mantra Wednesday: I am worthy

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I am worthy

As spring turns to summer, school ends and my days are filled with my daughter’s activities, I’m pressing pause on these weekly mantra posts. My plan is to incorporate some mantra work into the oracle posts and then bring them back in the fall, though we’ll see what life brings.

In the meantime I want to leave you with this mantra and the prescription to repeat it, as often as possible, until it’s no longer needed.

I am worthy.

I am worthy of love.

I am worthy of respect.

I am worthy of kindness.

I am worthy of joy.

I am worthy of happiness.

I am worthy of my dreams.

I am worthy of deep connection.

I am worthy of delight.

I am worthy of being treasured and adored.

I am worthy of my heart’s most secret desires.

I am worthy…

Because I am me.

Whisper these to yourself. Say them out loud. Write them in Sharpie on your hand or in lipstick on your mirror. Breathe them in. Begin to believe them. Because you are worthy. We all are. Forever and ever, amen.

Oracle Sunday: Life is a Highway

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Chuckle. You can thank me later when the song is playing on repeat in your head. Doesn’t it make you crave a road trip though?

From the Energy Oracle Cards deck by Sandra Anne Taylor
From the Energy Oracle Cards deck by Sandra Anne Taylor

This card is a reminder that life is a grand adventure. If you’re feeling stuck in a rut, or like some of the magic and color has faded, then it’s time to shake things up.

Book a vacation. Go camping for the weekend. Take a quick – or extended – road trip. Even if finances are strained, it’s important to pack your bags occasionally and head out to see the world.

Whether or not you have travel plans, do something that feels FUN this week.  Make a choice that has your heart beating a little more quickly. Dip your toes into a pool that’s just outside your comfort zone. Drive a different route to work or the grocery store and keep your eyes open for something new, something you’ve never noticed before. Eat a new food or try a new restaurant for lunch. Talk to someone you see regularly but have never had a conversation with before.

Believe that you’re on the right path even if you have no idea where you’re going. Listen to the whispers and nudges that are your internal guidance system. Don’t worry about where everyone else is heading, figure out which direction you want to go. It could be off the beaten path or on it – there’s no right or wrong.

Not sure where to start? 

Take a moment right now, close your eyes, breathe deeply and repeat after me: I invite joyful adventure into my life. I am open, ready and willing to have fun.

May your journey this week bring you exactly what you need.

Card copyrights belong to their respective authors, artists, and publishers, and are used for example purposes. I encourage you to purchase the deck(s) that speak to you and get to know them on your own.

P.S. Trust that you are exactly where you need to be in this crazy adventure called life. And if you feel really stuck, let’s talk.

Mantra Wednesday: Be the Light

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Be the light

There is so much darkness. Within us and in the world. Darkness is to be respected, seen, honored. It serves a purpose, though sometimes it’s impossible to understand.

We need the darkness in order to appreciate the light. We need the light to illuminate the shadow so we can stop being so afraid of it.

You ARE the light. Shine brightly. Send it out from the core of your being into the world.

Be the light in the way you love your friends, your family, your enemy. Be the lighthouse for those who are lost. Let your inner beam guide the way for those who are walking a few steps behind you.

This doesn’t mean being perfect. It doesn’t mean showing only the bright, shiny side of yourself to the world.

It means being you – the best you you can be in each and every moment.

The best you is the one who stops in the middle of yelling at your kids, takes a deep breath and starts the sentence again, maybe with an apology.

The best you is the one who cries when your heart is broken and laughs when you’re delighted, without judging either one.

The best you is the one who believes you have something to offer the world, even if you’re not exactly sure what it is (and even if no one pays you for it).

Part of being the light is seeing the light in others and reflecting it back to them so they can see it for themselves. Do that too. Let them see it in your eyes, your smile, your kindness.

Be the light this week. Feet on the ground, heart open, head held high.

Be the light by being YOU, not some version of you someone else wants you to be.

If you’d like a soundtrack for this mantra, here is a song I love, by Aykanna. Dance with me!

(If you’re reading this via email, click through the title to see the video)

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