A tree teaches me mindfulness, who’da thunk? Twenty-one years ago we planted a 6 inch spruce seedling which we got free at the fair. We carefully tended it for years, making sure we didn’t run over it with the lawn mower.

 

Last winter I was decorating its sparse branches with Christmas lights and realized that I could reach the top branches with no problem. A twenty year old tree!  The nursery

Funny how moving back and forth from our summer home creates the opportunity to re-focus my life. I sometimes feel in a labyrinth of paths. Sometimes it feels like walking in circles. Until I realize that just keeping put one foot in front of the other and I will come to my centre again. Living in one space for many months and then coming back and living in my other space means redefining how

As I was about to empty the pail of veggie cuttings this morning I was reminded of when I was a child and was asked to ‘empty the slops’. I hadn’t thought of that word for a long time. Slops. I don’t use that word anymore. I carry out my compost now. It’s the same task, different way of referring to it but it makes a world of difference to me. Compost is like returning back to the earth what I

When you are trying to figure out what you want most in your life sometimes it may help to discover what you really need to let go of first. The Michelangelo Method is a place to begin. Legend has it that when the famous sculptor, Michelangelo, finished his statue of David, a patron of the arts, amazed by what he saw asked him how he did it. “David was always there in the marble. I just took

Have you ever thought about your home taking care of you?

 

Your home can be a place of refuge, a sanctuary that cradles you and protects you from the elements of nature. It may sound crazy, but if you have reverence for your home, you will be more likely to care for it, keep it uncluttered and in good repair.

 

Today I received a meditation which will help you ‘thank your house’.

 

“Expressing

OK, they’re not ducks, they’re geese. It’s really hard to get a photo of ducks standing in a row.

 

Sadly, numerous friends of ours are experiencing some crisis which have resoundingly emphasized the need for making sure our ‘affairs are in order’. If you lost your purse or wallet today would you know exactly which cards were in there? Do you know where your important papers are? Could they be

If you are the type of person who really benefits from using lists then here is a list for you. Organizing by the Numbers, compiled by Claire Josefine.  It pulls together all the organizing gurus tips in one spot, including her own, with corresponding web sources.

 

 

 

12 Basic Principles of Being Organized

 

1. Think! Think vertical, think

For all you gardeners interested in recycling, here are some great ideas from John DeGroot of DeGroot’s Garden Centre.

 

“Don’t throw away that old rug just yet.  Cut the carpeting into strips of 3 or 4 ft wide and use it as a pathway in the garden.  Lay it down fuzzy side up and it will make a fine base for a garden path.  If it looks questionable, as I suspect it might, put a layer of woodchips

 

I want to share with you some words written by a friend and newsletter editor of Shalom Sacred Mountain Retreat Center, Pat Parisi about letting go. A lot of the work I do with clients revolves around just that.

 

“There's this little ritual that we do at the beginning of many a Shalom Retreat.

 

Let go and breathe out, and with it all the distractions that keep me from being fully present

In the summer, my husband and I move to our cottage on the great prairie ocean. In order to spend lots of time there we need an office from which to do our daily business in the outside world. We renovated a 50 year old 8 x 9 ft shed into a pine scented oasis, replete with laminate floor and big windows to look out into our bird land. Imagine how wonderful, while trying to solve a difficult