Energetic Residue

Yesterday’s adventure was an amble through a historic park. When I am in Philadelphia for work I love to go to Valley Forge National Historic Park. It is a large beautifully wooded park, rich with history. During the revolutionary war George Washington and his troops camped there from 1777-1778. According to Wikipedia over 2500 soldiers died in the encampment from starvation/malnutrition, disease, and exposure. It seems like such a contrast that someplace so beautiful could have such tragedy linked to it. Can we feel the energy of those lost lives? What about other historic places; do they carry residue of past acts?
I have always loved going to Valley Forge. The woods and gently rolling hills make for a beautiful back drop for a walk or a run. Even sitting at one of the multiple picnic tables and eating supper has brought me peace at the end of a busy day. Last night I went into the park from a different direction. Because of this I found myself in a different part of the park that I had not wandered before. I happened upon Washington Memorial Chapel. This Chapel was started in 1903 to commemorate the Continental Army and George Washington. The trees leaves were reflective of a camp fire with their autumn colors. I saw few visitors while I wandered the grounds. There is a large Cemetery behind the Chapel. Some of the graves are older but many recently departed rest there as well. As I was wondering amongst the tombstones, I spooked 3 bucks. Quite honestly when they spooked, so did I. I didn’t realize they were there until they bolted. Their sudden movement was in such opposition to the tranquil setting.
There seemed to be more of a feeling of sorrow in this part of the park. So different from what I had felt in the park before. Recently my husband and I traveled to Amsterdam. While we were there we visited the house where Anne Frank and her family hid during WWII. The sorrow in that place was crushing. I do not know if that sorrowful energy is from the people who hid there or from the multiple visitors that flock there daily. I was also blessed to be able to visit Stonehenge on the same trip. This historic site is located inside of a massive ancient graveyard. It is surrounded by burial mounds for some distance on all sides. The energy here is very soft and has no feeling of sorrow. Why is that? Is it because it is so old and all the old attachment has faded away. Is it because visitors come with an attitude of curiosity and awe? Or perhaps our ancestors saw death differently than we do.
The energy of a place can have such an impact on our experience while we are there. If we are not aware of our sensitivities to left over energy we could potentially take on those emotions as if they were ours. What are your thoughts about energy signatures? Have you felt this in the past?

Celebrate and Live

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Once upon a time I had given my power away and forgotten who I was. I allowed myself to merge into the man I was married to as if we really were one in the same. Perhaps that sounds like a good thing for a marriage but in my case it was not. I forgot who I was. What was important to me faded away like so much smoke. I was married for 12 years; from the outside looking in we probably looked like a family who was functioning just fine. In reality we were not. I had lost myself.

Around the time of the divorce there was a song that was popular, Dynamite by Taio Cruise, which helped me reclaim my life. I would drive around with he windows down and singing along with the chorus at the top of my lungs, “I want to celebrate and live my life”! I found such joy in the process of discovering who I was. Reclaiming my power made me giddy with happiness. I feel that over the next year I came alive again. I was transformed by the process of respecting and honoring my hopes and dreams. I found ecstasy in discovering new interests and thinking for myself. It was the start of a whole new me. If the me I was when I entered that marriage were to meet the me I am now, I would not recognize myself.

By honoring who I was and how I felt happy living my life, I was able to shift so much. Even though I did not enter that marriage thinking it would end, I can see how it’s ending was such a positive thing for me. It allowed me to wake up to myself. I am married again now and my new husband gets the benefit of a wife who knows what she wants and who she is. I am able to be present in the relationship. I can respect our difference and hold the space for each of us to be individuals. We share many interests, because we both had a good understanding of who we were before we came together.

Are there ways you are giving your power away?
How can you embrace your life?
What do you want to celebrate?
How do you want to live?

If your friend had great stuff happening you would not hesitate to help your friend celebrate. Look at your life and find the reasons to celebrate. We all have them. Some may be really big deals. Some may be tiny accomplishments. Whatever the good is that is there for you, celebrate it. The more you celebrate the more your life will give you to celebrate.

Happy life my friends,
Stacy, Adventure Sister

What comes after the last breath?

Have you wondered what happens when we die? As a hospice nurse I have spent a lot of time thinking about death. I have been with many people as they take their last breath. I have read books about what comes next. I also have had experiences that have lead me to have suspicions about what comes next.

My grandfather had a near death experience. His heart stopped. The medical team worked quickly to revive him. A call went out to my grandmother in the middle of the night, to let her know she should come and be with her husband immediately. While all of this action transpired my grandfather said he floated peacefully toward the light. He described the same light others have talked about. He described a feeling of utter peace. To my grandmother’s dismay, he said he didn’t want to come back from it.

I have been with many people as they have taken their last breaths. I believe that we do not go alone. I have seen them having conversations with someone/something that I can not see in the room. I have seen them looking up at the corners of the ceiling. I like to believe they are seeing angels. I have heard them describe visits from people who have died before them. I have seen them reach out, as if to someone, just before they take their last breath. I have even seen them petting a long gone pooch who I do not see in the room, but they believe to be there.

I have read a couple books about what comes next. They are not your typical heaven or hell stories. Letters from the Afterlife by Elsa Barker tells the story of a woman who started to get messages from the other side. This book was written in 1914 and is a very interesting read. Journey of the Souls by Michale Newton is another interesting read. Michael is PH.D. counselor and hypnotherapist. He, accidentally at first, regressed people to the time between their lives. The book is full of case studies and Michael’s theories of what happens to us when we leave our body. Dying to Be Me by Anita Moorjani is on my list of books to read. This is a book about a woman with terminal cancer and her near death and ultimate healing experience.

I have had past life regressions done as a healing modality. From the experience I had during the regressions, I do believe the soul moves from lifetime to lifetime. I have met people who, although they are strangers in this lifetime, I know on a soul level. Emy Minzel, Adventure Sister is one such person. Our connection was fast upon meeting and beyond any other explanation. We have surely been sisters in other lifetimes.

I believe in the eternal nature of the soul. I believe from things I have experienced, the people I have been with as their souls have slipped out of their bodies, and books I have read, that this earthly journey is not the end of us. I believe it is a part of our course. I believe it is a part of the experience and the lessons. I do not truly know what comes next. What do you believe comes next? Do you believe in reincarnation? I am interested to hear your thoughts.

What do Elsa and Anna have to teach us?

Could we learn something from a children’s movies? Could we learn to let go and love unconditionally? I have recently been reading The Untethered Soul by Michael A Singer. In the book he talks about letting emotions go. Just letting them roll through you, noticing them, and having no attachment to them. Years ago when I was first starting my spiritual journey I read the book, The Sedona Method by Hale Dwoskin. The idea is similar. It is about not holding on to those old emotions but rather letting them go.

All this talk of Letting go brings to mind the Disney movie Frozen. Could there be a spiritual message in this children’s movie? Well of course, spiritual messages can come from anywhere. In the movie Elsa has been holding on to all kinds of emotions of loss, self doubt, and hiding who she really is. Finally having enough she lets it all go and feels free. This freedom hurts the person who loves her the most. She has to learn how to repair the relationship with her sister. She eventually figures out that love is the only way to thaw the coldness between her and Anna.

As we let go of emotions, they will not effect us in the same way as they affect our friends and family, who are attached to their emotions. I remember in the Sedona Method Hale says how some people even have a sense of being “special” because of a bad thing that has happened to them. When I first read that, it struck me by surprise. Once I looked back at my life I could see how I was holding on to some of those traumatic experiences, because I was proud that I had gotten through them. This will make people more inclined to hold onto emotions, even ones that do not allow them to feel good. As we let go of these lower vibration emotions we will began to move out of the same energetic space as some of the people around us. With love we can bridge that gap. I feel a part of love is acceptance. When we allow ourselves to accept and love others in the space they are in, we are freed.

If you have more interest in learning about letting go of emotions I recommend either The Sedona Method or The Untethered Soul. I see the Sedona Method as more of a “how to” book, while The Untethered Soul is more of a lesson about becoming conscious. Both books have helped me along my journey. If you would like to comment more on either of these books or contribute, please feel free to comment below.

It’s not going to be easy but it will be worth it

I was walking in the woods one day and I came across a fairly large teepee structure. Near the structure there were several pages that had been torn out of a book laying on the ground. The heading on one of the pages said, “I am not telling you it will be easy, I am telling you it will be worth it”.
If we did not have to exert the extra effort we would not appreciate the blessing in our lives. I can compare this to Emy and my trips to the Boundary Waters. It was a lot of work to get there. Surviving while there was also a lot of work. It was not easy but in the end it was totally worth it. We were out in the middle of nature and hardly saw another human. We were surrounded by lush forests and clean lakes. There were no noisy motors to disturb our peace. It is an amazing place. The “work” of getting there and being there was not easy, but it was totally worth it.
Another example I have of this is my career. I have been blessed with opportunities to advance in my career. It has not been easy, it has required late nights and early mornings. I have had to work holidays and weekends. I have had to make choices about how to utilize my time. I have had to put in an amazing amount of effort and deal with stressful situations. It has not been easy but it has been worth it.
I think we have gut reaction when we see successful people. We think they are so lucky. This headline on a discarded page from a book, laying in the woods has caused me to rethink all of this. I was recently at a writers workshop. During the workshop they said it takes about 10 years to become an overnight success. With all the focus on the “Law of Attraction” we are lead to believe it should be easy. If we focus on what we want and keep our thoughts positive all of our dreams will come to us. I don’t deny that some people live very blessed lives. I also don’t deny the power of our thoughts and focusing on what we want. How these opportunities come to us may require us to roll up our sleeves and get busy to move our dreams into being. I have a friend who is an astrologer. I can remember him telling me that even though the planets may be aligned for romance, if I stayed in my house watching TV I was unlikely to find the love of my life. When the stars are aligned or the opportunity presents itself we have to be ready and willing to put ourselves out there and put energy into the project. I personally am ready and willing to dig in and put forth effort to make my dreams a reality.
What are your thoughts?

What do you dream of?

Are there things you have dreamed of doing but you are too scared, you don’t know how, or there never seems to be an opportunity? That was me once too. Along with my Adventure Sister, Emy Minzel, I want to inspire you to get out there and live your dreams. That is why I am writing this blog. I want to share with you our journey from the couch to the BWCA (Boundary Water Canoe Area), so that you can see how it can change your life. I want to use my background as a nurse and a holistic healer to give you a better sense as to what wellness is and how it involves mind, body, and spirit. Finally I want this blog to be a place where people who love nature can connect and share that mutual love and respect for Mother Earth.
Adventure
Do you dream of traveling? I used to be that person who talked about wanting to go places, but there never seemed to be enough money or time to travel. Now I travel almost every week. I want to share my journey to a life of travel and adventure so that you can have the life of your dreams too. There is so much magic and beauty in this world. You should be out there experiencing it, embracing the joy. It is there for you.

Wellness
Being truly well involves Mind, Body, and Spirit. This blog will share stories and invoke thoughts and conversations about true wellness. I want to share ideas about what might be under the discomfort or unhappiness that your body is projecting. I have been a nurse for almost three decades. I began studying alternative healing modalities because I was dissatisfied with what western medicine had to offer. I have studied wellness and have certifications in a number of other modalities and techniques. I believe everyone has a right to wellness and also the power within themselves to achieve it on a greater level.
Spirituality/Connection
Do you feel connected? Do you want to feel a greater sense of connection? My spiritual journey is ever evolving. I want to share stories of awe and amazement with you in order to help you find that sense of peace and connection within yourself. The spiritual aspect of wellness is far to often overlooked in western culture. Finding that connection can change your life in ways you may not even be able to dream of right now.
Love of Nature
For me nature is a place where I can find peace; it can quiet the buzz of the busy lives we find ourselves in. I feel that sense of connection through nature but I also find she drives my sense of adventure. Mother nature is full of lessons for us, not to mention, amazing beauty to share. Let’s come together as a community and share how that beauty can move us in ways nothing else can.
Emy Minzel, Adventure Sister and myself want people everywhere to find their soul siblings to go on adventures, experience improved wellness, find that sense of connection, and share their love of nature. We believe it will make the world a better and happier place. Thanks for taking the time to read my first blog entry. I look forward to sharing this journey with you.