METTA CENTER

I was sitting on the grass in my garden, looking at the blue sky, and I asked myself, "How am I feeling now?" And, the answer came, "I am happy." I was feeling happy for no reason at all. Just pure happiness. Simple and pure. I felt like a child, so delighted and in love with life! I laughed with such great joy! In that moment of clarity, I realized that there is no limit to how much joy we can receive . There is absolutely no limit! To top off this sweetness, we don't even need a reason before we can allow ourselves to feel so happy. We don't have to win, or to be right, or to be well, or to be whatever we think we need to be, to have or to do before we can allow ourselves to be in joy. We can be joyous because we are Joy incarnate. A client told me once that, to him, happiness is elusive like a butterfly. It never comes when you want it to. I think happiness comes when we allow ourselves to receive it without putting a condition on when we can receive i

Inside Michael J. Tamura's book, "You Are the Answer," there are several simple exercises to help you nurture your intuition and awareness. (To find out more about his work and his lectures, visit his website at www.michaeltamura.com .) For fun, I practiced one that is called, "Awareness Exercise: Seeking First That Which Gives Everything." It is so wonderful that I want to share it with you! When I do this meditation, eyes opened or closed, I connect to a beautiful energy of peace, love and joy. I can feel how deeply accepted and loved I am by my own Spirit. Not only that, I am aware that my awareness is aware of many things at once, which is simply amazing to me. So, here are the steps, adapted from Michael's book: When you are new to this meditation, you might want to do it with your eyes closed to help you focus more easily. Find a time where you can be free of interruption for about 10-15 minutes, and find a place to be comfortable in. Close your eyes.

H.P., whose story I shared below, has written a beautiful song that I want to share it with you (with her permission, of course.) I love her uplifting lyrics and soothing voice. I hope you find this song healing and inspiring for you as well. This is how she described her song to me, "I went out to watch the sunset and it was wonderful... I also felt inspired to write a song after our session, so i came home and recorded it... It is not done, I need to fine tune it, but here is what I have so far. I am not playing the guitar, it is prerecorded on garage band." Thank you, H.P., for sharing the beauty of your spirit. Click here to listen to it.

How would you like to care for yourself? How would you like to be cared for? What does caring for yourself look like? What within you is asking for your care and attention? We all care for ourselves, one way or another. We care for our physical selves in obvious ways like driving carefully, brushing our teeth, eating nutritious food, dressing and housing ourselves, and so on. There are also numerous ways we can care for ourselves emotionally, mentally and spiritually. My client, H.P., recently wrote me her insights about what taking care of herself is about. I hope you find it as inspiring as I do. I got to communicate with my dad. At first, I was just watching myself as a one year old playing with him... Christine then asked me how it feels to be with him... It felt safe, comforting,and free, like I was "home." Then Christine said, "He lives on a higher plane and h.e has a lot to teach you, what is he saying?" ... And then it got really quiet and I heard him say,

"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." ~ John Muir I haven't been feeling well lately. Yet, I was inspired to go to nature for some sunshine and to celebrate life anyway. As I walked in the meadow up the hill from my home, admiring the gentle ripple of the grasses, I felt a gentle and peaceful energy enveloping me. It was as if Mother Earth had embraced me in her arms. As I walked down the path, I felt all tension and resistance just melt away from my body. I felt like there was a cocoon of softness around my physical body. It was a new and strange sensation, and I loved it! I allowed myself the experience and appreciated every sweet moment of it. The tranquility available in nature is so inspiring, healing and comforting. I invite you to treat yourself and go out there to commune with nature. May you feel yourself touched by Grace, and held in gentleness and love.