Unexpected Endings – What to do when things don’t work
Four steps to finding your creative energy source alignment

We have all had those disappointing and dark days in life; you didn’t get the job, the deal for your dream house fell through, you didn’t get the big sale, or any sale, the money came in for your shopping trip but so did an unexpected bill, you’ve been diagnosed with cancer, you found out your partner is cheating on you, you go on yet another disappointing date, the scale says you gained another 10 lbs instead of losing it, this list could go on and on, just fill in the blank with your latest deflating event.

Recently I spent a day licking my wounds and reflecting on an event that just didn’t turn out the way I was hoping and visioning. It was not a big life changing event but it was still a disappointing turn of events that had me challenged to stay positive with the way things were headed. I had arranged to have my art on display in a new and different venue and location. I had spent a fair amount of money and time preparing for this event, feeling very hopeful that I would be expanding beyond my regular marketing circle and I really felt the time was right for this to happen. I wanted to bring my work to brand new eyes and I felt this was a great location for it to happen. The day of the event I was filled with excitement and energy!

However, the day did not unfold the way I had imagined. It was a lot of work setting up and taking down the display, and a long day of standing waiting for the throes of people that had been promised to me from other vendors. They never came, it was the wrong type of venue for my art and I came home without any sales to compensate my time and work. Not what I had expected. I was very disappointed to say the least. I had been so hopeful and excited for this new opportunity. But to be honest I had not taken the time to connect the morning of the event and was not centered in the feelings of a successful day. Instead all along I had a nagging thought in the back of my mind that it wasn’t going to be worth it. However, I pushed that away and tried to stay positive. As a result my confidence in my art and creative endeavors was severely deflated.

We can rationalize all we want when there are unexpected twists in life or we can move forward and experience real leaps of growth from these events. But how do you get yourself out of the slump of anger, frustration or depression first, because talking too soon about growing from an event that has made your life take a right hand turn may just make you want to throw your computer at me as you are reading this.

Step 1 - Begin where you are. You may be depressed or angry and that is fine. Recognize that there is nothing wrong with these feelings. Do not try to force yourself out of these feeling but don’t revel in them either. Just accept and acknowledge them.

Step 2 – Meditate - Empty your mind and breathe. Come back to your center and allow this energy to soothe you. No expectations, just be in this flow of healing energy and let go, let go and let go more. Give yourself up to this energy and commune with it. Stay there as long as you can.

Step 3 – After your meditation do something that makes you feel good. Maybe it is just have a quiet day by yourself walking, reading, being in your garden, playing with your pets, go out with your good friends, golf, dance, do yoga, ride a bike, have a nap, read a book, take some time off work and have a mental health day (or week). Just focus on what makes you feel good for this day. Just today do what your heart is calling for. Nurture your self.

Step 4 – Follow the inspiration that comes to you. When we do steps 1-3 there will always be some sort of inspired action that comes to us and we need to listen quietly to this inner voice. What is the next thing you feel inspired to do? Maybe it is to take another day for yourself, or bake a cake, or write. Sometimes step 3 is a day or maybe 30 days long but trust that you are following your heart and your creative energy source will guide you to your next step when you listen carefully. The path will be shown to you.

Pulling ourselves up and away from reacting to the physical world brings unconditional happiness. This takes practice but we can all get there. We need to move back into expansiveness, open our hearts, move away from small mindedness. Disregarding what is happening around you, what can you conjure up? You have no idea what is working behind the scenes, unfolding for you in the near future. There are wonderful new adventures coming down the pipes. Don’t let minor annoyances obscure the rich foundation of what is coming to you and block the power you have to create the life of your dreams. Bring yourself back to believing, don’t let your dreams wither at the edges by letting what you see around you interfere with your creations in the moment.

Commune with that higher creative source energy and realign with the vibrational harmonics that create worlds!

Happy Creating!
Janice

Ever have one of those mornings where you just can’t pull yourself out of bed? As you open your eyes and recognize the new day your mind immediately begins to rattle through all the ‘to do’ and ‘I should’ thoughts, giving you your orders for the day.

You think about all the things that you need to get done but your body lays there willing the day to disappear? Maybe you have had more than one or a couple mornings in a row like this. You are in a slump and you keep trying to pull yourself out but it doesn’t matter what you do, your immediate thoughts each morning are the workload ahead of you. Do you look at others and think, ‘How do they do it? Where do they get the energy to do all that?’

I recently had a couple conversations with two different people who asked, “Where does that desire or motivation to create come from? How do you find the energy to get up and follow through with your projects? It all just feels like work to me. The feeling to pull myself together and get going is fleeting and when I don’t follow through I am filled with feelings of guilt. I have all this stuff to do and I dabble around avoiding it and then the time slips away and I have accomplished very little of what needed to get done.”

I get it! I completely get this feeling as I am sure we all do! I have felt it too. I was completely drained living the life completing the list of to do’s and I shoulds. I know we can live a respectable life that way and reach goals, however, there will come a morning when you open your eyes and just can’t do it anymore.

You will look up and yell, “Really? Is this all there is to this life? Really? There must be more!”

And when you do get here, congratulations! Life is about to change dramatically!

Our actions to move forward need to be inspired actions. We are intrinsically creators. This is the core of who we are. And we are happiest when we are creating.

So what is an inspired action and how do I get there from here?

Here is what I know about getting to inspired action:

First of all we need to give ourselves permission to just BE. Our lives are moving so quickly and are so filled with daily action that we don’t allow ourselves to take back a part of our day just for us. As you plan your day, begin to plan a block of time just for you. In this block of time you will be able to do whatever it is you want to do. Even if it is sitting and staring into space (trust me there is value in this). You could read, watch t.v., go for a walk, whatever it is your heart is crying out for in that moment. Do whatever you want to do. And you are allowed to do this without any feelings of guilt at all. No guilt. You need a bit of time each day to be your own. This time is all yours, just for you; a time to shut off the mind chatter and spend with just you again.

A word of caution: be sure you don’t do this one day and then not again until the next month! This needs to be built into each day even if it is just 20 minutes some days. As time passes, you will find that you wake up in the morning and your first thoughts will be about what you are going to do in your ‘me’ time, instead of your ‘to do’ list. It is a beautiful feeling. It feels like a such a luxury!
When you do this, magic begins to happen! First of all, those feelings of luxury, gratitude for your own space, happiness and a sense of looking forward to this time, will all begin to trickle out into other areas of your life. And where your vibration is at is exactly what the Law of Attraction is all about!

Next you will find that in this quiet time is where inspiration will come to you. Your inspired ideas, or solutions to problems require you to be open to this flow for you to receive them. Inspired action will come to you. And following through on these ideas will fill your life with freshness and new energy, along with new adventures!

These inspirations will begin to unfold a life of excitement that will have you opening your eyes in the morning with anticipation for the new day!

Suddenly instead of laying in bed willing yourself to begin your day, you will be energized and want to get the day going with a smile on your face!

Happy Day Creators!

I’ve heard so many speak of how happy they are to see 2016 move out and allow the New Year to bring better times. I can totally relate to that as 2016 brought its share of challenges for me and my family. I know that I want to leave 2016 with appreciation rather than anger or resentment, or a good riddance to you feeling. I needed to reflect on the struggles this year has presented to me and find the beauty of these struggles.

We create our own reality? Really?

I have had my fair share of wondering, “How could I have possibly created this?”

It is during these difficult times that I can struggle to believe we create our own reality and wonder why in the world would I create this?
This is especially hard when life is going just great and you are feeling good and then BAM you lose your job, or you get sick, or someone you love gets seriously sick, or someone has an accident, or worse - they die, or the love of your life leaves you for someone else, or some other traumatizing event happens throwing you off your hill of happiness. It happens in an instant. Fear engulfs us, shrouding any possible sliver of light to shine through. Our minds quickly begin to roll around the negative. We delve into these shadows bringing to mind every bad experience we have ever had or heard of.

Remembering those personal past experiences can be the worst ones for trapping us. You can feel the choking hold that fear has on you. You fear those bad times are coming back again. Days can go by with this fear gripping you. And you feel you will never get out of this hole. You can feel it in your body, lingering. Everyone feels it in their body in different ways. I feel it in my solar plexus like I’ve been kicked in the stomach. Sometimes it can be so bad that you may feel that you will never smile or laugh again. I won’t talk about it. I clam up and hold it close in my body, pulling in tightly.

You cannot create from this space and you do not want to stay here.

How do you pull yourself up when the conditions around you are giving you every reason to be in fear, anger or sadness?

Here is what I have learned.

When I am in this place of choking on the heaviness of fear, I can only be there for a short time and then I begin to feel the emotional exhaustion. I tend to think I need to fix the situation by some sort of action, or maybe I can control it in some way.

I feel myself moving from fear and victimization into anger. I suddenly get fed up and angry with the Universe for plunking me into this mess. How could I have created this? I will have my rant to the Universe either in my writing journals or often when I am driving down the highway, alone in my car. I will yell, complain and vent, hitting my steering wheel letting the Universe know that I AM FED UP! I AM DONE WITH THIS FEELING OF BEING SCARED ALL THE TIME! I DON’T WANT TO DO THIS ANYMORE! I DON’T DESERVE THIS! At this point I begin to defend my position. I HAVE WORKED HARD IN MY LIFE....blah, blah, blah.

And suddenly through this angry rant I begin to feel a bit of release happening because as I let my anger out I am releasing control and letting go. I can see a crack of light through my fear. I can feel my heart expand and my solar plexus release. I am reminded that I have been here many times in my life, and each time I rise to the top. I finally let go of trying to control the situation and instead move into the feelings I want to create in my life. My focus, clarity and intention swell up inside me and this brings a shift to the situation.

You see when we begin to really see our own power and connection to our Source Energy, there is no room for fear.

My rant quickly moves from one of anger and resentment to one of clear vision and gratitude and this is the key to unlocking the door to new opportunities, and miracles.

We feel our power again, which requires no controlling or force in the situation. When you feel that crack of light coming through this is the time to remind yourself that everything always does work out for you. This is temporary and you will get through it. There is so much help out there for you if you just open and allow it to flow. Open to the flow and allow the Universe to play this out. You are manifesting a beautiful, wonderful world for yourself. Every day you are a new person and past experiences no longer matter. Past experiences are who you were, not who you are now!

You will have allowed yourself to be open to miracles happening; maybe in the form of an inspired solution to your problem, or meeting the right person to help you move through your situation with grace and gratitude, and many times it may be that you get a new job that brings wonderful new opportunities, or a long needed rest for your health to recover with a renewed appreciation for life, or a financial windfall of some kind.

You see the Universe doesn’t want you to suffer and does not put you into situations to teach you a lesson. You create that yourself; the

Universe pulls you through with grace and love when you open to allow that into your life.
We are human and we vacillate between trusting and then wanting to control, or feeling victimized in this world. When terrible things are happening to you or around you, stay in your center of connection with your source and you will impact the situation in a positive way.

Standing in fear, anger, guilt or resentment keeps us blocked from the flow of miracles.

So look back at 2016 and make a list of all the good that came from the struggle. You are bigger and better, more expanded from those challenges. And when you feel the gratitude flow through you and a sense of pride for what you have come through, then you are ready to manifest your new year.

Welcome 2017 with a heart of joy and enthusiasm, leaving no room for fear at all!

Happy Creating! Cheers,
Janice

We are in the midst of the holiday season and it can be difficult to stop and just breathe. Our days are filled with rushing around, making preparations, shopping, attending events, all with a very full schedule that seems to continually fill up with more and more activities.
This season my husband and I were invited to a December wedding in Canmore. A beautiful ceremony in the mountains that we were honored to be present along with our friends. Who wouldn’t love to go to a winter wedding in the mountains? It was magical.
When the day came it was very cold as it usually is in December in the mountains; however it was an especially cold day and evening reaching down to -30 celsius.
Of course it had been a busy week getting things prepared to attend this wedding, along with other festive activities, and both of us were fighting off that seasonal flu bug that had been going around. We were tired, as so many are at this time of year. But we made it and were happy to be there.
After the ceremony, the family went off for pictures and we went off to have supper at a local restaurant. When we arrived at the restaurant we were surprised to find it was completely empty. We had the dining room to ourselves and were seated in front of the fireplace. The waitress thought the cold was keeping people tucked away in their own homes and chalets. This was probably so, as it was extremely cold even for the locals. We ordered some drinks and our meals and while we waited I gazed out the windows that surrounded us to the amazing scenery of the Rocky Mountains. Suddenly I became fully present in this moment and felt the energy surge through me. I looked at my husband and excitedly exclaimed, “This is it! This is it!”
Startled he looked at me and said, “What? What are you talking about?”
“This is it! These are the moments! These are THE moments!”
He smiled, slowly grasping where my thoughts were headed.
I continued, “These are the moments! Look around! Look at where we are! Surrounded by the Rocky Mountains on a winter day, in front of a warm fire in a lovely rustic restaurant, a glass of wine in front of me, with my husband who I have loved since I was a young teenager, and a delicious meal on its way! These are the moments that make life so perfect! Oh my gosh! I have dreamed of this! If this is the best that it gets, I am forever grateful!”
We all love beautiful spaces and places and this was one of exceptional beauty.
Many years ago, when we were first married, I used to dream about a romantic winter weekend getaway in the mountains. Of course then we lived on the other side of this country and a weekend getaway would have cost us thousands of dollars. I had never seen the mountains and as a young married couple, this remained in my dreams.
Thirty-four years later, somehow here we were!
Clarity is a beautiful thing and brings you instantly to the present. It was at this moment that I realized what had transpired from those dreams without any effort or planning. It had just transpired on its own, in its own timing.
I share this story with you, certainly not to boast, instead my hope is to inspire you in two ways:
 One is that to reinforce for you that we are the creator of what manifests in our lives,
 And the other is to be aware of those moments and open your heart to them, thereby creating more and more of these experiences.
The more we are aware of the gifts in our life, the more the Universe responds and delivers even more. I know there are many more moments to come in my life and I’m sure there will be bigger and better, because I have seen it in my mind. When we are fully aware and present in those moments at the point of manifestation, expanding our hearts with gratitude, we open the flow for more of our dreams to manifest in our lives.
The holiday season is incredibly busy for everyone. We work full days, rush around on our evenings and weekends getting ready for all the gatherings of family and friends, with barely enough energy left over to enjoy these events. And yet it is filled with these potential moments if we become fully aware of them. You to be ready for them!
Taking time to be playful and creative helps relieve the stress and opens you to the flow. Slow down, breathe, play games, color, decorate, bake, read, ski, do whatever you do that makes you happy. And practice being fully present in the moments with your loved ones. Put away the phone and look them in the eye. Be fully present for them. And when you do, you will find you are fully present for you too.
I write these words knowing I have much work to do around this. My mind continually pulls my thoughts here and there, planning and making lists. But this peaceful presence is where I want to be, this is what I strive for. These are the moments I want to experience in life because isn’t this what it means to live a life of happiness as opposed to a happy life?
These are the moments that make our life rich and full. These are the memories we savor when we look back on our life; gathering with family and friends, good food and conversation, bonding us together.
Connect to your creative, playful energy to open your heart and just enjoy the moments. Recognize the ‘this is it!’ moments in your life; the ones that fill your heart.
Happy holidays everyone and wishing you a new year filled with your own creative energy!