In 2007, Noel and I moved to a small country town in regional Victoria. It was a lifetime away from the oceans of the Sunshine Coast where we’d previously lived. People often asked us why we’d chosen this town “of all places”, and the answer was simple. We’d fallen in love with a home that was for sale. That home called our hearts, and much like the best romance novels, it inspired us to move across two states to be with it. “Kooyim” was the name of our home. It was built in 1904 during the Gold Rush era, and had magnificent 12 foot ceilings, chandeliers, beautiful wooden floors….even its very own wine cellar. We’d lovingly renovated it from...
Many years ago, a very great man called Gary Young was traveling through France. Gary is now recognized as the father of the modern-day essential oil movement, and the founder of Young Living Essential Oils. But in those days he was a passionate young man who had first-hand experience of the power of therapeutic-grade essential oils. He realized that almost all essential oils on the market were either heavily adulterated, or produced in a way that compromised their powerful action. He had a dream to establish an aromatic plant farm, and to produce a quality of essential oil that has never before been possible on our planet. In those early days Gary was very much an apprentice, thirsting for knowledge...
A very powerful question to ask and to answer is, “What am I?” Explore the relationship between your Spirit, and your physical body, so you know how they are interconnected. Many years ago, my Aunt went through a journey with breast cancer. After chemo and personal development work, the cancer had gone into remission. But a number of years later it metastasized into secondary ovarian cancer. Whilst her mental attitude was strong, and she believed she’d be able to “beat it”, the truth was that she didn’t. In one of our many conversations before her death, I asked her what she thought happened after death. Her response was that we’re “just a physical body” and she believed in “ashes to...
As I walked along the beach this morning, I was saddened to see how much human trash was buried in the sand. Normally I’d pick up 2 or 3 items in my half hour walk along the beach – maybe a cigarette butt here or there, or a plastic wrapper from some chewing gum. But this morning the tide was coming in, and had washed a lot of debris onto the beach. There were all the wonderful natural things I’d expect to find on the beach - the occasional bits of seaweed, the handful of “blue bottles” (similar to a jellyfish), shells and cuttlefish bones, and the many pieces of cunjevoi (a type of sea squirt) which had been dislodged...
I’ve always thought of myself as someone who sees the world from a “Glass Half Full” (or even overflowing) perspective. When faced with a challenge, I look for the gift. When staring at a road block, I actively look for the solutions. But I had an interesting thing happen yesterday, which has changed my perspective. In my capacity as a volunteer wildlife rescuer, I had been caring under license for an injured python – a really big Mumma python, almost 3 metres long, and very strong. I named her Bliss because of her gentle personality. I was comfortable reaching into her enclosure, picking her up without the extra caution of “heading” her (meaning to hold her head). I trusted her. ...
