Artemis (my namesake) is the Greek Goddess of Nature and the Moon. She was the protector of women and small animals. So knowing that, it seems quite a contradiction that I came into this world with an unfathomable terror of spiders. Unless they were one of those teensy, weensy, almost invisible “money spiders”, they were the “terriblest monster” to me. I ran screaming (yes literally, screaming) into another room whenever I spotted one. And this has been happening for as long as I can remember. In fact, as a child I used a torch each evening to check in my bedsheets and under my bed for spiders. They were worse than any boogey man. Now, knowing what I know, I...
A few days ago, I was driving home. It was a peaceful drive along a tree-lined street, and I was feeling especially happy. Up ahead of me, I noticed two water dragons sitting in the middle of the road – one large one, the other a teensy hatchling. As I approached them, they didn’t run off, which was unusual….so I slowed down even more, to give them the space to move out of my way. That’s when I noticed something in the middle of the road where they had been standing. It was a dark stain, just subtly darker than the bitumen itself. “That’s odd,” I thought. But I already had a sickening hunch of what it was. Unfortunately, my...
Being mindful doesn't mean having no goals, only that wherever we are on the path toward our goals, we should be fully there and embrace the moment. A mindful attitude can bring peace, happiness, and fulfillment. This month, our inspiration comes from Jon Kabat-Zinn and his beautiful book, Wherever You Go There You Are. Are you ready to discover which statement has chosen you today? Intuitively pick a number between 1 and 9, and see which inspirational saying and oil blend is choosing you: 1. Guess what? When it comes right down to it, whereveryou go, there you are. Whatever you wind up doing, that’swhat you’ve wound up doing. Whatever you are thinking rightnow, that’s what’s on your mind. Whatever has...
One of the things I most love about our warmer months in Byron Bay are my beach walks and swims. Every day the ocean shares her gifts with me. Sometimes, she’s as gentle as the softest breeze, and there’s hardly any swell. The waters are crystal clear, and little fish swim around me as I float in her salty womb, letting all my cares wash away. Other times, she shows me her muscle. Strong currents and powerful waves challenge me to find the “sweet spot” where I can play and relish the pure strength of nature, without being tossed like a rag doll onto the sand. It’s my one ritual that sets me up for a beautiful day. I never...
I recently attended a business seminar ang got chatting to one of the other participants. We were talking about the concept of making friends. As I shared my own process of connecting with people and developing friendships, I received a vision or analogy that seems very fitting, and I'd like to share with you. When people ask me to describe myself, I say that I’m “multidimensional”. This is because I have so many facets to me, like the most beautiful crystal. No matter what angle you look at this crystal from, you will discover something new and wonderful. The beauty is in the variety. Some aspects of the crystal may look dirty or terrifying…yet when viewed as a whole, the...
