What a wonderful day I had at Union Baptist Church! On June 6th, I was one of 26 people honored as an Everyday Hero. What is an Everyday Hero? I’m glad you asked. An Everyday Hero is someone who is out doing wonderful things to help their families, communities, churches, schools, etc.  And, I gotta tell you, there were some extraordinary people being honored that Sunday afternoon.

I was honored for being a support and caregiver to my mother during her journey with breast cancer and, during that time, doing the same for my father during his medical situations. It was a tough and long three years, but we’ve all come out on the other side better than ever.

I was also happy I was able to share the day with my Aunt Gloria and friend Charles. Thanks for coming out!

I was asked for a brief bio to be added to the program and I wrote something that didn’t really speak to why I was being honored. Well, lucky for me, the person announcing me and giving me my award we none other than Marlene Johnson, the mother of my best friend. I stood at the podium waiting have her read what was in the program. Poised, dignified and smiling.  Unbeknownst to me, she wrote some completely different because she knew my story. It caught me completely off-guard and before I knew it, the tears were running down my cheeks.  I’m telling you, going through something and hearing about what you’ve done from someone else is an emotional and humbling experience.

I was presented with a certificate, a beautifully framed poem entitled Everyday Hero, and beautiful brooch. Great gifts  right?!

I wanted to again say thank you to Union Baptist Church for honoring me with such an awesome award and letting me be apart of such a special day. I also want to congratulate all of my fellow award winners. We looked great in our red and white!

The news of the earthquake that rocked Haiti this week has been dominating the news.  It’s on every station, almost around the clock.  The devastation is so great and far reaching, it hard for me to watch for more than one story or two. 

It brings back memories of helpless watching as Katrina devoured New Orleans and the Gulf coast.  I felt that there was nothing I could do.  I mean, I’m just one person and this needed a major movement of people to turn this around. 

Then I realized something.  It’s not always about being in the thick of the battle, sometimes is about making sure the trucks has something to go into them, to take to the survivors.  Sometimes it’s about giving of your time and hands to help get things collected, sorted and packed.  Sometimes, the little things you put into motion can transform into something that’s is beyond you.

So, this time, in my effort to help, I’m compiling information that you can use to get the word out, check on loved ones or make a donation.  The list will continue to grow as I find new links and information.

Keep the people and country of Haiti in your prayers, but also, help where you can.

Ways You Can Help:

• U.S. Department of State Hotline
  • The State Department Operations Center has set up the following number for Americans seeking information about family members in Haiti: 1-888-407-4747 (due to heavy volume, some callers may receive a recording). Our embassy is still in the early stages of contacting American Citizens through our Warden Network. Communications are very difficult within Haiti at this time.
• Skip the latte & donate $5
  • Wyclef has a text donation set up for Haiti. Text YELE to 501501 to donate $5 for Haiti Earthquake relief. It’s automatically added to phone bill.  You can stay updated with the organization at http://www.yele.org/
• Donate locally
  • Join in the efforts to bring supplies to the Haiti people by finding a local organization or church and making a donation.  They are in desperate need of food, water, clothes, bandages, water, socks, underwear, etc.  If you don’t have the money to buy what’s needed, you can always donate your time.  This will be a big push in a lot of communities and I’m sure the extra body of help would be welcomed.
• UPS Provides FREE SHIPPING to Haiti 
  • Service to Haiti suspended; UPS provides aid Service Update UPS is providing financial support and emergency logistics assistance to help survivors of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. We are working with relief organizations to transport much needed supplies and food to the area. If you wish to donate to the relief efforts, UPS encourages you to work directly with the following organizations: The American Red Cross – www.redcross.org CARE – www.care.org UNICEF – www.unicef.org

    UPS is not accepting shipments from individuals or local organizations due to the logistics challenges in Haiti. Service will resume as soon as conditions allow. Shipments to Haiti made prior to the earthquake are temporarily being held at UPS facilities in Miami.

    The UPS package guarantee does not apply when transportation networks are disrupted.

Do what you can, but please, if you can, do something.  Even the smallest things add up to something greater.  As the saying goes, many hands make light the work.  Lend yours today.

Another year. Another decade.  Another opportunity to face challenges, dreams and to just plain get it right.  As usual, I didn’t set any new year resolutions.  I figure I know what I need to do, I just need to get off my butt and get it done.  And that’s exactly what I’ve been doing lately.

Busy, busy, busy…

The end of 2009 had me busy writing, knitting, cleaning and reconnecting.  No, I haven’t finally finished editing the 3rd draft of my novel.  But, I have written 2 free aromatherapy email courses.  So, still writing, just not in the genre I’ve been living in.

I’ve been knitting all those Christmas wraps and scarves and didn’t give them to the intended giftees.  I did a holiday craft show in December (my first show in 3 years) and decided to take all of the gifts I knitting to the show.  The plan was to sell the knits for the Team Millie Mil Race for the Cure fundraiser.  It was a great way to get it kicked off and rolling.  Well, that plan flopped, especially since I put next to a woman who crocheted hat and scarf sets.  It wasn’t the fault of the organizers.  They know me as the aromatherapy and shea butter lady.  The fundraiser was a last minute idea.  <sigh>

Instead of holding on to them, I gave them out to co-workers as gifts.  They know I knit, but have never received any knit treasures from me.  I surprised them all with a scarf and the response was priceless.  The look of appreciation of their faces was the best gift for me.

Winter Cleaning

That takes care of knitting and writing, now we’ll move on to the mountain I have to move.  When I say mountain, I mean mountain.  I have accumulated so much in my business and personal lives that it’s time to really let things go.  I’m not going through the task of cleaning out all of my crap stuff.  I have a lot of business inventory I need to sell and personal items I need to donate or trash.  It will probably take me all winter, but when I’m done, I’ll be done.

Another good thing, when it’s all done I’m having a major clearance sale.  I’ll keep you posted about that.

Saying Hello Again

2009/2010 has also offered up opportunities to reconnect with old friends.  I have yet to make a few phone calls, but it’s great to have at least connected over facebook (forcing me to visit more often than my usual every 3 months).  This month I plan to make those phone calls and catch up to those who have added a light in my life in one way or another. 

Journey Ahead

I’m really looking for all that 2010 will offer.  I know it will be a year filled with changes and blessings.  I know it, because I can feel it.  And, when I feel it, I become more and more excited about it.  Here’s to a great year!

Guest post by Christine Kane

What does it mean to Live Simple?

Does it mean you toss out your belongings and head to the woods to live deliberately?

No. (Though you could do worse!)

Does it mean that money is bad, and you can get self-righteous about wealth?

Nope. (This is often just a convenient way to ignore your own money issues.)

To Live Simple is to be empowered and present. It means you honor the massive power of your attention by making clear choices and creating a life you love – free from clutter of all kinds.

Here’s how to start living simple right now…

Eat Simple
Instead of complicated recipes, get local organic produce at tailgate markets. A tray of sliced raw vegetables dipped in hummus or vinaigrette is a great dinner. Or lightly steamed greens with rice. These are easy to prepare and easy to digest. The fewer foods you combine in a single meal, the easier it is for your body to use the energy.

Shop Simple
My favorite thing to carry with me when I shop is this mantra: "If it’s not an Absolute Yes, it’s a No."

Heal Simple
The Western approach to health is often about adding stuff to fix symptoms of imbalance. This typically involves more pills – which cause more side effects.
Here’s a better way: Allow the body to heal itself. This means removing the excess – excess toxins, fats, sugar, meds. Healing – while sometimes challenging – can be a simple, loving process when we let our body express its inner wisdom.

Carry Simple
Do you hoist around a giant purse crammed full of stuff?
Bring only the basics. Say, lipstick and a credit card. It’s a great feeling to ditch the purse!

Or, try this: Take all of your membership numbers (AAA, Priority Club, etc), type them onto a small piece of paper, and laminate it. You’ll cut your wallet size in half!

Store Simple
Just because you have storage space doesn’t mean you have to fill it. See your storage areas as a metaphor for your life and your body. Clear out the old stuff that you don’t use. Stop clutching to the, "Oh! But I might need that one day!" excuse. Trust the Universe to provide what you need when you need it.

Feel Simple
Honor your emotions, and learn how to talk about them simply. Emotions aren’t as complicated as we make them. It’s the stories we attach to them that make them feel so complicated.

Nurture Simple
In my Uplevel Your Life Mastery Program, participants often discover that they don’t really love sugar, junk food, or hours of television. They only use these things as substitutes for what they really want. (Which is often a nap!)
Junk food and television are often fake comforts. Authentic nurturing is usually laughter, sleep, or a great meal.

Grab Simple
Do you grab that free tube of "acne cleansing lavender toner" the mall employee is handing out even though you haven’t had a pimple in years? In other words, if it’s "free," do you automatically grab?

Start looking at your space and your energy as more valuable than the dollar. Our culture has it all wrong when it sees money at the top of the value chain. Free stuff isn’t free. Take your power back, and place a high value on your time and space!

Drink Simple
Get a Sigg Bottle and make filtered water your drink of choice.

Join Simple
Remove yourself from membership programs, catalog subscription lists, churches, clubs and/or associations about which you don’t feel passionate.

Intend Simple
When we have too many goals and intentions occupying our minds and spirits then we never get to feel the power of completion. We’re always "catching up." Honor your deepest intentions right now, and let the hundreds of other possibilities go.

Speak Simple
Listen more. Talk less. Give up the complaining habit. Cease all gossip. Take a moment to breathe before you answer a question. Recognize that listening doesn’t mean waiting for your turn to talk.

Love Simple
Here’s how I love someone best:

I am really with them when we’re together. I watch their facial expressions and truly listen to them without trying to fix or critique their choices. I delight in them.
For me, this is love at its most simple. It has nothing to do with greeting cards, gifts, or "proving my love." Loving simple is the easiest of all of these things. That’s why I saved it for last.

Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane publishes her ‘LiveCreative’ weekly ezine with more than 4,000 subscribers. If you want to be the artist of your life and create authentic and lasting success, you can sign up for a FRE*E subscription to LiveCreative at www.christinekane.com.

Prayer for myself:  Lord I ask that you forgive me of all things I have done that was not pleasing to you.  I ask that you forgive me my negative thoughts, deeds, and language.  I forgive myself for all those things I have done that were not in line with the life God has for me.  I forgive myself of all the pain I hold and I release it.

Forgiveness is one thing that everyone says we should be able to give freely, but it’s the hardest thing to do.  It’s even harder when the person you need to forgive is yourself.  Last week I did something I haven’t done in a long time.  I gave too much of myself to someone I barely knew.  It was nothing physical, but rather thoughts, feeling and ideas.  This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but in my mind, it should have been something that was giving freely overtime instead of in an interview like conversation.

I couldn’t believe I did it, but even more surprising, I couldn’t believe how much it bothered me.  I mean it really bothered me.  I beat myself up.  I ate as I pondered why I did it.  I ate as I beat myself up.  Before putting another snack in my mouth, I sat back and took a breath.  What are you doing?  Are you seriously going to let this bother you this much?  I shook it off and went to bed.

When I woke up I couldn’t believe it was still on my mind.  It was then that I really  got how much the situation bothered me.  It was also then that I knew I had to let it go.  I looked at my self in the mirror and had a conversation with myself…out loud.  I forgave myself.  I forgave myself for giving too much of me so quickly.  I forgave myself for not feeling I could say “that’s none of your business”.  I forgave myself for not listening and trusting myself more.  Even after all this time.  I told myself what’s done is done.  There is no going back, only forward.  You know now what you still need to work on and it’s ok.  It’s not something to carry with you.  It’s done.  There is no going back to correct it.  Let it go.  I forgive you.

It was a freeing moment for me, as well as a lesson.  Sometimes we need to forgive ourselves of the trespasses we make against ourselves.  We need to be able to forgive ourselves, get up and keep moving forward.

Is there something you need to forgive yourself for so you can move forward?  Is there a regret you are holding on to that is time to let go of?  Remember, we are forgive that we may forgive, and you are included in that number.

Prayer for you: Learning to love – Psalms 86:5

For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.