Bathroom mirrors are often the first entry into the day.  Not only do those decorative, reflective devices greet you as you stare into them, but some offer inspiration and encouragement.  If you lean in close, you will be able to “fog” the mirror which means you are still breathing and participating in this human adventure.  Words and messages on your bathroom mirror will help your mind and your spirit stay focused in the moment and on the day ahead.

When someone else’s bathroom mirror inspires you, there is feeling of excitment and then an urge to find a pen in order to capture the new lesson.  The mirror I stared into just yesterday had a little sticky note with a quote from Mary Oliver:  ”What is your plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

When I read her words, I had to take another conscious breath.  The quote has been lingering in my head and in my heart.  You are on your own path in search of inspiration to validate your very precious self.  Using your bathroom mirror is another strategy to help you become your own best friend.  Imagine your best friend loving you unconditionally each and every time you look in your bathroom mirror.

Find some quotes to write on your mirror with lipstick or use those colorful sticky notes to carry messages that will energize your day.  The secret is to read them everytime you look in the mirror and smile back at yourself!

Here are a few messages that just might make the morning more fun and the day lighter.

*  Peace begins with your lovely smile!

*  Look deeply…listen with compassion!

*  Breathe, my dear!

*  Find some wild, crazy, delightful, fun today!

*  Look past those wrinkles…your essence is what matters!

*  Glad you are here, it takes courage to get out of bed!

*  Just look at you!  You are lovely!

*  Whatever you do today…laugh a lot!

*  Just breathe……. and be still!

There are hundreds of sites for morning inspiratioin, here is just one!

http://inspirationmorning.com/

My daughter came in late last night and I didn’t hear her usual, “Mom, I’m home”.  This morning she told me that she just didn’t want to wake me up.  Waking up is a good thing. What’s the alternative??

Think about the morning and how you greet the day.  Some of us wake with an alarm and others of us wake up naturally, usually at the same time everyday.  It is a delicious attitude to come into the morning with the awareness of simply “being alive”.  When you actually think about it, aren’t you grateful for the chance to have a another day,  a second “go ’round”, an encore to what happened yesterday.

When you first awaken and are just coming into consciousness, you have a powerful opportunity to begin your day in a positive way. Those few seconds-from sleep to awareness- matter most. Those first moments, when you realize you are no longer sleeping, can make an positive impact on your reality for the entire day.

If you are getting this on February 14th, then Happy LOVE DAY to you!  Did you remember to give yourself a Valentine’s wish?  Will you take a moment to smile and acknowledge that you are very special…..do it now!  Thank your lovely self for all that you are and then read more about “How to Wake up in the Morning with a Blink and a Wink”

Becoming your own best friend is a fundamental requirement to your happiness in life.  I found the following quote in my email  and it is a reminder to all of us.   Arnold Glasow said:  ”A true friend never gets in your way unless you happen to be going down.”

The monstrous snow storms here in New England have created a challenging adventure for traveling, either by car or by foot.  The ice under the snow can catch you by surprise.  Slipping and falling happens suddenly and you could find yourself in a precarious position if you are not mindfully careful.

The same is true for the love you are cultivating for yourself.  If you are not cautious and paying attention to that inner voice, your self talk can take you down in a breath, without you even realizing.

There is a skill that is simple, but often not easy.  Change your self talk to remind yourself that you are just enough, perfect exactly the way you are and that it is your own personal responsibility  to be happy.

Listen to Jewel’s sweet song;  ”What You Are”…and breathe in the words so you can begin to encourage yourself, as a best friend would do, to love who you are right now!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDvO7-r3bOs

Be well and stay that way!

Our Meditation for Beginners will start February 8, 2011  Tuesdays at 3:30pm

Heartsong Yoga  264 North Main Street  East Longmeadow

Back in the early 1950’s, my mother would watch  the Jack LaLanne show and faithfully do her exercises.    While she would stretch and bend in the living room, I would often try to follow along.   Without any equipment or challenging moves, Jack LaLanne presented the world with a simple and effective way to maintain health and wellness.

Jack had an amazingly  positive attitude towards life  and wanted people to be healthy and happy.  Infact, the beautiful white dog he often had on the show was named “Happy”.   He was an inspiring example of living in the present moment and often would tell my mother…. “Don’t think about how old you are,  just think about today” .   Jack LaLanne, passed away last week at a sparkling 96 years young.

If you are young enough to remember Jack, enjoy a trip down memory lane:

In one of the YouTube video’s he shares with his audiance the plea for people to be happy and smile more.

In the second  video, his face exercises  made me and my mom  laugh until our stomachs hurt.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEboAJf9UVc&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isLJ024EdMA&feature=related

Practice the exercise of smiling and being happy.  You always have a choice and the opportunity to feel good.  Just decide that you will love your smiling self.

Be well and stay that way!

P.S.  Check out the Meditation for Beginners Class starting Tuesday February 1, 2011 at

Heartsong in East Longmeadow.

http://www.heartsongyoga.com/events/coursesforming/

When the phone rings very early in the morning, your heart skips a beat and you dash to answer the call.  My granddaughters are still in Budapest, Hungary, so the phone call comes through skype, which has that entertaining and distinctive ring.  Thinking there just might be something wrong , I connected the internet and found Aliya sitting on her mom’s lap.

My precious five year old sweetheart had a big bandage on her chin.   “Tell Nana what happened”, said my daughter. Through tight pursed lips, Aliya told me about the trip up the stairs and the stitches she had to get at the hospital.

My seven year old granddaughter, Selah, proceeded to show me how the doctor used a needle to sew her  sister”s chin .  “It was just like sewing the stuffed dolls we  made at Christmas time.”, she declared.  “And Aliya was very brave, Nana.”

We chatted a bit about how the accident happened and all along, Aliya, kept her face motionless and tried to talk without moving her mouth or her face.

“Where’s your smile?”  I asked.   “I can’t make it, Nana, my chin is too tight and I have to keep  real still”, she whispered.   “Well, I can see it in your eyes”, I told her with hope and assurance.

Her face lightened, her big brown eyes brightened as her body relaxed and there was a slight up-turn of her lips that radiated the smile I have come to know and love.  “It’s there, I can see it.” I smiled back with gentle optimism. ” No worries, Aliya, you didn’t lose your smile, it is safely in it’s rightful place and it lights up my computer.”

Is there a smile that you are holding back and unwilling to express because the stitches around self esteem are just too tight?     Realize that your precious self is indeed safe, secure and in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing.  Trust that you have the tools to  easily soften your face, relax your body, breathe deeply, radiate  self love and know you are special.  Just decide to believe you are falling in love with yourself!

When mother nature decides to orchestrate a monstrous snow storm, it is inevitable that school will be canceled , public offices will shut down, most people will stay home because traveling will be hazardous and flights will be delayed. As the fury of the snow onslaught materializes,  the world will come to a silent stillness.  Walking outside when the tempest comes to an end is like walking into a magical world of motionless, serene and quiet tranquility.

Before the children head outside for a “snow day” of sledding  and the plows begin moving the mountains of fluff, there is a moment in time that the world is quiet and the silent stillness creates a space of luscious peace.

If you have not been able to witness the magic of the space between activity and stillness, make a promise to yourself to be there the next time it snows.  Step outside for just a few moments, or longer, and be present with the world as it waits for its next breath.

Claiming your own preciousness and acknowledging the self love you have been cultivating is like stepping into your own magical moment in time.  Declare a “snow day” for yourself.  You don’t have to wait for a storm, or the news station to do it for you.

Come to know that you are  very special and deserving of love from yourself.   Relish in the stillness, in the space between the in breath and the out breath, that you are pure love.  Make time to feel the magnificence of who you are and hold on to your noble splendid self with dignity and tender loving care.

Watch for Snow Angels!

Take a look:

http://www.fotosearch.com/IDX005/349141/

As I look out my window, on a frigid January morning, I push a button two times and say the words, “Please Start” and my little red automobile engages the ignition, revs up the motor and begins to thaw out.  It’s just like magic!

When the mechanics installed the devise, it took me a while to understand that I didn’t have to start the motor again.  The car was running and all I had to do was put  in the key and go.  For some reason, I kept turning the key and grinding the motor.  Patience and a second instructional lesson, helped me figure it out.

If I let my car run for fifteen minutes,the heater defrosts the windshield , the rear window melts the frost and I get into a toasty vehicle with gratitude and a big smile.  Great way to start the day!!

Why not install a starter for your own personal self love.  Before you even get out of bed in the morning, or periodically throughout the day, click your inner magical voice and remind yourself that you are warming up to be the best you can be.  Let the realization that you do love yourself, defrost all the self criticism, self doubt and self defeating language that has become so familiar.  Use your wisdom to install the programs for success, ease, peace, well being and delight in your life.

When you are warmed up, humming along, in the flow of things, there is no need to keep starting your engine.

Warmly enjoy the glory of winter!

http://bit.ly/ftepGo

At midnight on New Years Eve, my youngest daughter, Rachael, asked me a simple but profound question.  At twenty-four, she is joy  in my life and and inspires me with hope.  Her big brown eyes sparkled as she inquired:  “If you could ask God one question, what would it be?”  Her own answer to the question opened my heart and reminded me that “infinite love and gratitude” are the words for 2011.

“If I could ask God one question”, she went on to say, “I would ask, why is it so hard for us to know love?”

When my oldest daughter was in her early twenties, she had made a statement I will never forget.  It was in the heat of an argument and she turned to me with fire in her eyes, and blurted out:  “Sometimes it is just too hard to be loved”.

Grateful to be their mom, I am always learning from these two young women whom I cherish so deeply.  We are all searching and wondering about the love for self that seems  illusive and almost unreal.  To know love means we must admit that we are lovable.   Although we might not remember coming into the world, taking in the first breath of life and being swaddled in the tenderness and awe of pure love, we spend our lives remembering that truth.

Can you make a commitment to allow yourself the miracle of knowing that you are love, that love abounds, that you are deserving of love and of loving yourself.  Make the decision to choose the abundance of endearing love which is always available simply because you are special and precious.

We are in this human adventure together and loving happiness is our birthright.

I found a video and the first answer to Rachael’s question is a wake up call for all of us.

A young women said:  “Actually I think that God is within everyone so I would basically be talking to myself”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlkIttlY0mo

Set your path for an amazing year ahead and practice loving yourself more!

In LovingKindness,

May you be safe, May you be happy, May you be peaceful, May you healthy and May you live with ease!

It’s snowing in Budapest and it’s Christmas morning!  What a perfect beginning to a beautiful holiday celebration.  Watching the delicate flakes move through the gusty wind caused a sense of curiosity and interest in what do those little lacy pieces of ice exactly look like.

Here is a link to everything you ever wanted to know about snowflakes:

http://www.its.caltech.edu/~atomic/snowcrystals/photos/photos.htm

We learned in grade school that there are no two snowflakes alike.  Each one is unique, unparalleled, and can not be compared to anything else.  Indeed, the same is true for ourselves as humans beings.  Here on planet Earth, each one of us is unique, unparalleled and can not be compared to anyone else.

Stop trying to measure yourself to a standard that is just not YOU.  Recognize that you truly are the special creation that is meant to live a life of joy, ease, peace, good health and abundance.  Give yourself the gift of loving who you are right now.  Celebrate your individual light of unique preciousness and live your life with gratitude and infinite love.

Have some fun with a Holiday Gift of making your very own snowflake:

http://www.zefrank.com/snowflake/

Warm wishes for a wonderful Holiday!

Smiles, gena

Snowflakes together make great skiing fun!

The airline fees for extra luggage are unreasonable for international travel.  You are allowed one bag for free and the second piece is $50, while the third bag is an additional $200!   For those of you who know me, I truly tried to get everything into two bags, but the holiday gifts just didn’t fit, so with the extra space I took along some goodies and each bag could only be 50 pounds.

My granddaughters live in Budapest, Hungary and before my trip, I was talking to Aliya, the five year old, on the phone.  She was very excited about my coming for the holidays and looking forward to our visit.  I was explaining my dilemma to her about bringing three suitcases.  Her enthusiasm for a solution was brilliant and she was emphatic that it would work.

“Just tape them all together, Nana, and then you just have to carry only one.”

I smiled at the thought of hoisting a Santa size bag over my shoulder as I trudged through the airport.  It would only weight 150 pounds, because I packed them all to the max.

Instead, I paid the fee for the additional bags and arrived in Budapest without any of my luggage.  I should have listened to Aliya, taped them together and given them to Rudolph.

The connection in Munich, Germany was much to short and ran all the way to the next gate.   I got on the plane to Budapest but all three pieces never made the connection.  I arrived without the presents, the goodies and my “stuff”.

The report for missing luggage was filed hoping the suitcases would arrive soon.  No such luck, as of this writing, the bags are still in Germany because of snow storms and canceled flights and the girls know that I am disappointed.

Aliya climbed up into my arms to cuddle.   “Nana”, she whispered in my ear, “don’t be sad.”

“It’s really okay that your suitcases are not here….you are here and I think you are the best present ever!”

The wisdom of my granddaughter should be a headline on the nightly news.  When you are taking stock of your worth, learning to be in love with yourself and coming to know  your own preciousness there is no need to take extra baggage.  Realize the truth from the heart of a child.

Young children know they are special!  You were young once and you are beginning to realize that  all you ever need is to love yourself first. Although this idea of loving yourself might seem very simple, it is not easy.  Many of us struggle to even admit that we are lovable and deserving of love.

Try this idea on for size.  Bring a picture vividly into your mind of actually being a gift….and begin to remember that indeed YOU ARE THE PRESENT!

Be well, stay that way and radiate your own lovely light for the holidays!