Here we go again its Mercury Retro!

Tags

boundaries, communications, confrontation, February 2014, heart, Mercury Retrograde, nurture, personal, Review, self love, Soul Sharing, space

Those who follow the planet cycles will know it’s that time again for Mercury to go into retrograde. Friday 7^th February it all kicked off for the first time this year. Mercury retrogrades are all about communication. It’s the perfect time to speak up & speak out authentically. For a more in depth explanation & daily commentary check out Elizabeth Peru’s FB page.

I really enjoy a good retro period, as it’s a great chance to review & make changes. The only thing I don’t like is that communication technology does go a bit bonkers. Don’t be shocked if your phone, ipad, computers & other electrical equipment start to do their own thing.

The pre-shadow phase of this retrograde started on January 22^nd. Think back to that time & what was going on in your life. This will be your theme to work on from February 7^th to 27^th.

For me it’s all about boundaries this time around. Learning to say ‘no’ is a struggle. I hate letting people down, especially if something sudden comes up & they need assistance. However I often say ‘yes’ to things out of guilt, obligation & trying to be nice. I take on extra work & ‘I’ end up suffering for it. In others words I become run down because I give up my days off or my business suffers, as I have to put projects on hold. Projects that bring me great joy & will help grow my dream life. Putting others needs before mine own is counterproductive & makes for a bad energy exchange.

My challenge this time round is more when I’m put on the spot in person. When this lesson has come up before I learned not to reply to texts or emails straight away. I would step back, sink into my heart & ask within for the answer to what I should do. I’d have the time to properly review my schedule & workload. Then make an authentic decision. More often than not I can find a compromise & come back with a good exchange this way. Everyone is happy then.

However when something is proposed in person or on a phone call I dither. More often than not I’ll say yes without thinking it through from the heart. Being put on the spot for an answer I just jump in & say yes to please the other party. Time to change this reaction.

My retro theme will take strength & courage. I have a strategy though!

If I am asked in person to help out with something I will politely excuse myself to check my diary first. It is very important to move away & be in my own space for this. Someone can easily be peeking over your shoulder at the diary & clearly see a blank space & that may lead to questioning. Once away from the situation I will be able to sink within for my answer whilst cross checking my schedule. If I am available & my heart says yes, all is well.

However if there is a space in my day due to scheduled down time or business building that is when I really need to assess my needs first. Can I move things around? When is my next day off? It’s also not just the day in question that needs reviewing, it’s the days before & after. No good taking on extra work on Tuesday if I’m flat out crazy busy Monday & Wednesday. I will help others more if I have attended to my needs first as I’ll be in a better place to serve.

The Challenge is on! I’ll keep you posted on how I go…

Have you had any recurring themes over the past few weeks that are calling for your attention? Feel free to share in the comments below.

Love K xx

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©Seren Holistic Lifestyles Blog 2014
(please share the love with full credit thanks)

Here’s what I’m loving right now

Tags

love, organic, passion, personal, products, stuff

Apart from the usual loves in life; family, partner, pets, friends, yoga, vegetables etc. Here are some alternative love’s I am loving right now.

This fab vegetarian recipe book that was gifted to me recently. It’s an oldie but a goodie. The advantage of a book twenty years old there are no super fancy hard to find ingredients that take out of the way trips to random health food stores. It’s all about vegetables, plain & simply tasty. Cooking like Granny did (without the meat). LOVE!

Fresh flowers. Lot’s of discounted gems to be had right after Mother’s Day last month. There is nothing more cheerful than a vase of flowers close by. Lily’s are my favourite right now as they smell divine. LOVE!

Furry hot water bottle. It’s  freaking freezing in Perth & rather than use an energy zapping heater in the office I’ve opted for this puppy. Keeps me toasty when I’m feeling a little nesh. LOVE!

Indah Organics perfume balm in Dewi. Since ditching the toxin packed commercial fragrance I’ve found these pots of scented loveliness. Jasmine & Neroli mixed into organic coconut oil. Very delicious. LOVE!

Organic lemon & ginger tea. Yes it’s much better to use fresh lemon & ginger but at the office the Nerada bags hit the spot. Herbal tea is great for hydration in the winter months. Warming yourself up from the inside out. LOVE!

Organic Pandora’s box of joy from Peachy Clean. A website full of amazing products shipped super quick to your door. I love the attention to detail with the elegant packaging materials too. Check out our interview with Haley all about holistic skin care. LOVE! 

What are you loving right now? Share below in the comments.

Love Seren xx

Crystal Healing – Blue Apatite

Tags

blue apatite, communications, crystals, energy, healing, metaphysics, pendant, personal, Third Eye, Throat Chakra

I’m very excited to introduce you too crystal of the week. Blue Apatite is a very positive crystal with multiple uses. I was attracted to it primarily for it’s association with the Throat Chakra to enhance communications. My part job as Bikram Yoga teacher requires me to pretty much talk non-stop for 90 minutes. Any help I can get in assisting the words to flow is greatly appreciated.

My first piece of Blue Apatite I used to tuck into my pocket and carry around with me. This causes all sorts of problems especially when you forget it’s there and it falls out on the floor or worse, goes through the wash. Ideally Apatite should be worn against the skin, especially over the throat chakra to improve communications. Then I got the idea I should purchase a Blue Apatite pendant.

I don’t usually like buying crystals online, I like to pick them up & feel if they are a good fit. Connect with them and let them choose me. You don’t know for sure how they have been mined either online. I tried the local crystal shops but nothing grabbed me so I hit up Etsy. I like supporting small business artisans and the pieces on there I felt were made with love, and not mass-produced in factories.

I found it! The pendant I knew should be mine. It was set on a silver bail reminiscent of a Celtic knot with a neoprene cord. Perfect for the hot room, neoprene won’t go skanky when soaked in sweat. A stunning piece, had crafted by Charlotte Taylor.

Blue Apatite isn’t just for communications it enhances creativity and awakens the inner self. If attuned to the third eye it can improve concentration. A good piece to have if you’re studying. Another handy benefit, if made into an elixir (watch this space more on elixirs later in the series!) can help suppress hunger.

I got rather attached to my Apatite. I think at one point I was wearing it a lot for teaching. Just like a security blanket. You never want to get too dependent on anything this can cause all sorts problems. My Apatite had a great way of letting me know this. When I was carrying out over the tile floor for it’s monthly cleanse, it slipped and fell. On the tiles. A small piece broke of one of the edges. I was gutted. Can you imagine if the whole pendant has smashed? It was telling me I’d become attached & I needed to let it breathe for a while.

Now I rarely wear it to teach. I feel I have good balance between my third eye and throat chakras. I wear it whenever I feel drawn to it. It’s an awesome piece to draw creative inspiration that helps in my main day job. I make sure it is fully secure before travelling over the tiles!

• Chakra: Throat & 3^rd Eye
• Vibration: 9
• Colour: Blue, grey, green, grey, yellow
• Family: Apatite
• Birthstone: February & March
• Metaphysical: Balancing, creativity, healing, peace & eliminates negativity. Good for communication, clarity & intellect
• Physical: Suppresses appetite
• Spiritual: Manifesting, meditation, psychic development & releases blockages.

Love & light,

Seren xx

Reference for pendant artist:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/CharlotteTyler?page=1

Crystal Healing – Amethyst

Tags

amethyst, colour, crystals, energy, healing, metaphysics, personal, ring, selection

Welcome to the first in a series of Crystal Healing posts. I’ve only recently become interested in the metaphysical properties crystals possess. I now incorporate crystals into my daily life.

Little did I know crystals have been around me a lot longer than I first thought? Isn’t that always the case? Something is right there under your nose but you don’t notice it until you’re ready?

My first crystals appeared in my life about eleven years ago. I’d been living in London and working hard in my first real job so I decided I wished to treat myself to something nice. A friend of mine had this gorgeous ring from a silversmith based in the Portobello Road. I went along and loved her work.

However I wanted something really special, not off the rack so I commissioned her to custom make a ring for me. I like chunky, solid rings. Silver, never gold which made that part of the design easy to figure out.  At the time, and still is now, my favourite colour is purple. I wanted a purple stone ring. The silversmith tipped a tiny bag of purple gems onto her workbench and asked me to select two that I liked the most. That was my first encounter with Amethyst crystals.

Crystal selection is a deeply personal, individual process. I believe crystals have the power to select their owner. It’s a partnership. Even when I give crystals as gifts I can go into the shop with the intention of one stone and come out with totally another. They have a way of communicating so you just know which is the right one.

Mary Kunus perfectly describes how crystals are living things.

Gems and crystals come from within Mother earth.  They are alive and intelligent, having the intelligence of nature within every cell of their beings. (1)

Crystals are conductors of energy, both positive & negative. That is why they widely used in healing work.

There I was, eleven years ago, selecting, or being selected, by my first Amethyst crystals. The final ring is amazing. I still have it today and I’m wearing it now as I write. It has travelled round the world with me, it moved to Australia with me, it’s been dirty, scratched and tucked away in a drawer. It even stayed in tacked when a twelve-year-old girl asked for a closer look then proceeded to put it in her mouth & try to get one of the stones that had come lose out with her teeth. (WTF I know!) Reminder – never let anyone touch your special crystals, their energy can pollute them!! It’s still here, in one piece, for me when I need it.

Amethyst is a great protection stone. I had no idea when I took it travelling with me that is was there to look over me & keep me safe, repelling more energy than it attracts. Now whenever I travel I make sure it is on my finger.

Here’s more about Amethyst:

• Chakra: Crown
• Vibration: 3
• Colour: Purple/violet
• Family: Crystal Quartz
• Birthstone: February & June
• Archangel: Zadkiel, Angel of forgiveness, mercy, tolerance and transmutation of negative energy.
• Metaphysical: Brings calmness and clarity to the mind especially in times of confusion and anxiety. Making it is very good for stress. Amethyst increases intuition helping one with spiritual, mystic and psychic work. It can help with addictive behaviour, especially alcohol abuse.
• Physical healing: Calms the nervous system, digestive tracts and the heart. Used for insomnia, headaches, hearing disorders, stomach, skin and teeth. Cleanses and purifies.

Love & Light,

Seren xx

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©Seren Holistic Lifestyles Blog 2013
(please share the love with full credit thanks)

 

Reference:

(1) Kurus, M. 2002, Cleansing Negative Energies from you Gems, Crystals, Jewlery and Pendulums.  http://www.mkprojects.com/fa_Cleansing_Gems_Jewelry_Pendulums.htm