We missed a week, but we're back, and better than ever -- with a bigger website!

We've added several NEW pages, including scripts for your webpage. Need a calendar, date banner, clock, or message box? We have it!!! And, we've just added a collection of cat care articles, too!
Why not visit us and check it out?

You'll find great deals like the ones below on our Gifts For Catlovers page, and also on the Dining and Body-Mind-Spirit pages!
Don't miss out on the great Summer Sales!

Recently I participated in a weekend workshop designed to help us strengthen our "inner guidance" muscle. One of the more powerful lessons our teacher conveyed had to do with the image of the locked door. We typically struggle and rail against the locked door that holds what we desire, and fail to see that often there are no walls surrounding the door. We assume that where there is a door, there is a wall. If we can't open the door, and no wall exists, we can walk around the door and gain entry, if we are open to a different way of seeing.

Imagine that you are watching a movie on your DVD or Video Cassette player. You eyes are riveted on the TV screen and you become wholly absorbed in the dialogue and action. Your awareness of the room you are sitting in has shrunk to the size of the screen you watch. In that moment of space and time the movie becomes your world.

CUT! Your spouse or family member hits the "pause" button to grab a snack out of the kitchen. Your awareness shifts. You let out a long sigh, as if you've been holding your breath. You notice the colors, shapes and sounds around you. The whirring sound of the hamster running in his wheel; the outdoorsy smell of your dog as you let him into the house; the changing light outside your window; the muscles in your body that want to be stretched from sitting too long in one position. In shifting attention, we sharpen our sense of observation and open up to other realities.

Okay - back to the "locked door." My book is almost ready to send to the printer. My book cover designer has made the final revisions. Now all I have to do is complete the page layout design. My mental thoughts about this make me feel stuck and helpless: "I've never done this = before. It will take me forever. I need someone else to show me how to do this. I will make a mistake that the printer won't catch. I'm starting to procrastinate. I feel guilty for procrastinating. I'm a bad person (ouch - I can't believe I said that!)." So much for that version of "reality."

Let's try this again. Take 2. My doubting mind spews out predictable limiting thoughts masked as reality. My inner observer acts as a camera, notices, and shifts the viewfinder away from the doubter. The camera pans the landscape for other realities. I remind myself why I wanted to do the page layout design in the first place - to make sure that the design of the typeface fonts and spacing reflects the love and energy of the book's message.

In the example above, my first set of thoughts left me banging on the door in frustration. My shift in attention brought new thoughts that allowed me a way around the door towards what I wanted, kind of like walking through "walls."

Try This:

As soon as you are aware of a thought that leaves you feeling small, stuck, or frustrated, pause and notice it. Acknowledge it as one reality (of many) and mentally set it aside. Play with shifting your focus to a thought that feels better. Create another reality for yourself. Let's say you desire a promotion at work but aren't sure you ________ (fill in the blank). You could focus on what you have to offer that would benefit people at this higher position. Maybe you want to find a different job but find the search frustrating. Try focusing on how you will feel when you've landed your dream job, and then take the next action step towards that goal. Nervous about giving a talk? Find the message that you feel passionate about sharing and your confidence will naturally emerge.

In the August 6th newsletter I spoke about "slipping into the moment." This issue we're "walking through walls." Maybe we'll be "walking on water" next issue! All jests aside, let's remember that we humans are powerful creatures capable of creating amazing things and attracting what we desire. In the past few days I've experienced an inner serenity and deeper confidence. Everything in my physical environment appears lush and clearer, like looking through a sparkling clean windshield. These changes came as a pleasant by-product of paying attention and not going on "automatic."

Mary Anne Radmacher-Hershey says it best - "It is not the easy or convenient life for which I search . . . but life lived to the edge of all my possibility."

With love and magic,

Deb Call

Anita's Animal Shelter Mexico