After being Inspired to Declutter, last week, we had a Family Decluttering Session, over the weekend.  Not that all the kids were overly inspired to participate but they did help us with clearing out the tops of their wardrobes. 

David and I decided to choose just a couple of areas which could be cleaned out ~ I am notorious for getting inspired by a project and going all out with it.  David’s wisdom (and previous experience) tempered that for me and we only worked on a selection of areas.  We had to do all the tops of the wardrobes because we needed all the space to put things back.  We have almost no storage area in our house as we are built on a concrete slab and have cathedral ceilings.

A few hours later, toys and games and junk were strewn across the loungeroom floor.  I called a family meeting and everyone was instructed to vote Yes or No about keeping different things in the piles.  Mostly we cleaned out old board games and jigsaws.  The kids were fantastic remembering their ’special’ keepsakes which had all been stashed into one or two boxes together and therefore beyond my memory of which thing belonged to whom.

After time off for lunch, David, Kels and I popped out to buy 6 large plastic tubs with lids and came home to pack up the ’goodies’ we had decided to keep.  Now they are sitting neatly in the tops of the wardrobes, safe and tidy.  We have 2 large garbage bags of rubbish to throw out and a few tubs of keepsakes for the kids to take with them when they start their ‘independent’ lives.  All in all, a job well done.

But, most importantly, the energy in those areas is Clean and Crisp and Energised.  It’s just like putting the crystals outside for a Full Moon Energy Bath … they come back in sparkling with health and wellbeing.  Now our ‘dark’ corners of the house are experiencing the same thing.  And, WE are feeling better, too!

I Love preparing for NEW things and NEW events.  I Love creating NEW projects for stamping, like this week’s Pot Luck Stamp-A-Stack cards, and NEW ways to inspire things I am already doing.

My recent stamping projects are very reflective of this process.  I have used up a lot of my stash of cards, in recent times, and noticed that, apart from birthday cards, the category in my stash which was most depleted was the ‘miscellaneous’ selection.  They’re the cards I use to Say Hello … or Thank You … or to Acknowledge a Friend.  The next MOTHER EARTH DREAMING workshop is all about Sacred Space and Norma and I will be sharing tips and processes for Decluttering.  As is the way when I am planning a workshop, the process is one which I seem to have to actually participate in, too.  Very appropriate at the moment because I have heaps of stuff in my Stampin’ Stash which really needs to be used up ~ so there is plenty of space for the NEW product available in the Autumn Winter Mini Catalog arriving in April!

I decided to create a bunch of ‘Pot Luck’ cards.  I call them ‘Pot Luck’ because I thought if I was offering a workshop for this project we would use whatever Designer Series Paper was in my stash, regardless of whether it was old or current product.  I chose a layout I liked, the stamp set which coordinated with the paper and Voila!  8 cards, 4 different sentiments, 2 colour combos.  Instant supply of Friendship Cards!

The Cleansing part of life involves sifting through ’stuff’ – physical and emotional – and working out which things need to be ‘decluttered’, which need to be ‘deleted’ (like all the old posts on Joy Express, or all the scrappy bits of paper and cardstock in my Stampin’ Stash), and which can be ‘recycled’ into something purposeful (like new cards from old product, or new ways of seeing old situations).

I LOVE Decluttering!  I’ve decluttered some ’symbolic’ things, this week; things which represent emotional baggage – Very Empowering!  In fact, at lunch yesterday, I gave Lovely Bernie an Archangel Oracle Cards Deck and suggested the ladies all took a card for themselves as the first part of readings over our meal.  My card was “Take Back Your Power” – Woo Hoo!  A timely reminder!  After a while, clutter builds up, in the craft room especially, and I find myself less able to think clearly.  So, a DECLUTTER is called for and, after a flurry of activity, peace and harmony reign supreme … and clear thoughts present themselves again.

Clear space and cleansed energy is the recipe for NEW ideas.  They formulate like seeds germinating in rich soil … they inspire a journey into new areas.  I really, really enJOYed creating one of the projects from UStamp With Love 2010 that I was inspired by at the time, but hadn’t made ~ a Designer Series Paper Card Holder and Matching Note Cards by Jenn Picard.  The process was new and challenging and thought provoking and a little bit complex but also very simple.  The outcome was FANTASTIC!  And, I think I have Fallen in Love all over again with the Pink Flamingo DSP from Stampin’ Up!

The same energy is going into my Angel Business.  This week, a flyer came from my local printing business and I am formulating new business cards.  I have decided to incorporate Fundraising for Charity into my events, to Give Back to Mother Earth and support the Environment and the Animals.  I have 3 one day workshops planned, with fabulous co-facilitators, to take place during the next 6 months, and meetings have been arranged so we can organise content and processes.  I have a wish list of Events to Attend ~ other people’s workshops which interest me and will allow me to access a whole lot of new information and concepts.  And, I have tentative dates for “Michelle Time”  which involve time out, nurturing & pampering sessions, and TRAVEL!

Cleansing and Clearing are a necessary part of Good Health and WellBeing.  They are a constant process … just when you get comfortable with the harmonious space, the cleansing and clearing process seems to need doing again.  I do think that comes from being a craft indulgent person.  LOL.  So, I put on some Fabulous Music, grab my Feather Duster, and dance through the cleansing/clearing/decluttering process ~ knowing I am actively working on Being JOYful!

I have just had the realisation that sometimes one just wants someone to take one’s hand on the very difficult journey through the chaos of emotional battery.

A Journey through many years of … emotional upheaval … expectations of negative experiences … travelling the road less travelled … navigating the clear path.

Sometimes, actually, many times, we just want someone to Understand that we can’t be like they want us to be, but we are Loved all the same.  We want to be accepted for our uniqueness.  We want to be honoured and treated with dignity for our differences, rather than used as a battering ram for others to express their discomfort and distress and pain.

I want  … peace and happiness.

I want … understanding, and to make sense of my experiences.

I want … to be honoured for who I am.

I want … acknowledgement of the challenges life has thrown me.

I am angry about feeling excluded.  I am angry that others have received much more care and consideration than me.  I am angry that I suffered incredible emotional abuse during so much of the formative part of my life.  I am angry that I was expected to be accountable for my actions and yet others don’t have to be.

I have ~ the LOVE of Great Friends.

I have ~ the Compassion of lovely people, in ‘this’ part of my life, and from ‘that’ part of my life. 

I have ~ remarkable understanding of So Much of the metaphysical world.

I have ~ been Blessed with things and people too numerous to mention.

And, I am still sad.  Sad for me.  Sad for Me.  Sad for ME.

But, from tomorrow onwards, my Life of JOY will be back on track, if a bit slowly and a bit rocky, at times.  I have people to Love, people to Laugh with, people to Care about, people to Share the Exciting New Directions I am travelling in.

“With JOY“ is still the way I want to live my life … it’s still bubbling around deep down inside me. 

And that brings a Smile to my Soul.

Dad died, yesterday.

It was much more sudden than I expected, although a long time coming considering the health challenges he had been living with for over 5 years.  The process of his death sounded peaceful and I am sad.  Sad for so many things. 

Sad for the loss of someone who had a very important part to play in my life.  Sad for all those affected by his passing.  Sad for the challenges I faced navigating the seas of pain and judgement from my extended family.  Very sad that persecution is still happening in the world.

However, I was Blessed to be surrounded by Very Special People during the course of the day of Dad’s death.  And, I find a smile on my face, in spite of the tears in my eyes, as I write. 

As I made my morning coffee, I was struck by the ‘little’ things ~ I watered my African Violets and remembered they came from Dad (many years ago).  My thoughts wandered down the path of other things I do or have which were ‘Dad’ ~ my LOVE of Fuschias; my love of Chinese food (bought and homemade); my memories of heated discussions about life, when I was growing up; our conversation after his operation for oesophageal cancer, about alternative medicine and philosophy of life; the plants in our garden which came from Dad …

And, the Lessons Learned from Dad … taking risks; following your heart; aggressively pursuing a course of action; being consistent; supporting others rights to believe what they believe; how to be True to Yourself; effective communication; living life as a square in a round hole; the importance of Being There for your kids …

After 40 odd years of grief and distress about my relationship with Dad, I have, just this week, reached a place of peace with him.  I am so grateful.  I understand why I had to live through such challenging times and have such challenging experiences … the Soul who was my dad has guided my journey in this lifetime more profoundly than I ever, ever realised.

And, I am Humbled.

Edited to add: My nephew was killed in a car accident in the early hours of this morning.  He was 20 1/2 years old,  and leaves a girlfriend and daughter … my Love and Compassion go to my brother and sister-in-law.

What an interesting week it has been.  I am really happy to say that I have SURVIVED!  YAY!  I was very anxious going into this arrangement ~ old programming as much as anything ~ but this year has brought a new pattern of thinking … when I get anxious about something (which occurs often) I am honouring that anxiety, taking a breath, and really looking at what I am anxious about, and why.  “Ease & Grace” Wild Woman helped me recognise that process and also reminded me, in a completely ‘off the cuff’ way, that I could change that behaviour.  Wow!

David is on his way home, today.  I am looking forward to seeing him – a lot!  I am not looking forward to sharing my bedroom with him, though.  I Like my space!  But, I guess it will be worth sharing because it means we are together, and the thing I have learned this week is that Responsibility Shared is Responsibility Halved.  Crises are significantly less intense when there is someone to share them with!!!!!  And even more manageable when that someone believes in you – even when you have a quite different perspective on, and approach to, life.

I think that the other thing I have learned is that Being Authentic, as I’ve been exploring with “Simple Abundance”, is Much Greater in concept than I have ever realised.  For years, I have been seeking the True ME … it’s been a Very Long, Very Intense, Very Frustrating process.  Over the last couple of days, in particular, I have discovered/realised that Being All That I Can Be is HUGE.  I believe that I have finally reached one of those Places of Peace, where I am accepting of the circumstances around me.  (Not a usual occurence in my life in the last few years.)

Yesterday, I had the vision of standing in the surf being battered by crashing waves.  The forces of the water were so strong that I really felt that maybe I should just lay down and body surf in with the waves, to shore.  Then, I realised that pylons which hold up jettys experience tidal forces, too, and they remain firm.  I ’saw’ myself standing in the waves, and noticed that they parted around me, and kept on with their destination, even though I was blocking some of the path.

At this Moment in Time, I am Happy and Accepting of  the choices I have made and the place I have reached in my heart.  I am still experiencing Grief and Sadness for a particularly difficult situation, but The Gift from this is that Thanks to My Father, I have been able to find my way clear of several lifetimes of baggage. 

And, I am Grateful.

And, appreciative.

Go in Peace, Dad.

Welcome Home, David!