METTA CENTER

This afternoon, as I was about to start on my next task on my to-do list, I felt a nudge, an invitation to play, from Spirit. I went outside to my garden and took a deep breath, feeling the cool wintry air on my face. I turned westward and saw the tree tops drenched orange in the late afternoon sun, and my heart skipped a beat. The scene was so glorious! So magnificent! In that split second, I felt so deeply nourished. My soul was fed! And, interestingly, I felt so rich, like I owned the world. 'Tis a wonderful feeling! Yes, life is full of riches for us to enjoy, even if they come in small slices of time and in unexpected packages. I invite you to allow yourself to take a moment out of your life and witness moments of life's magic. It is worth your while! You are worth your while!

the sun, gentle and warm on my skin the soft wind that dances with the leaves and caresses my hair the brilliant, sparkling colors I see the blue skies of the morning, the white clouds, the turquoise sky with pink clouds at sunsets, the red trees and orange vines the vibrant green grass in November, glistening under the sun the beautiful and gentle woods with smells so sweet the songs of birds reminding me to celebrate life a life so filled with wonders and amazing gifts... Thank You.

"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious." ~ Albert Einstein Several nights ago, I was out looking at the stars during my "blue time," the time in the early evening when the sun has just set and the world seems to be under water with blue hues everywhere. I love that time of the day, it feels magical and wondrous to me. During that time, as I ran my fingers along the blueness as if I could touch its essence of gentleness, I felt and heard the blessings: "All this peace, beauty and love is for you, for your family and for the world, Christine." In that moment, I felt deeply connected to a such delicious source of contentedness and I found my body tingling in ease. I said "I accept, I accept, I accept." It felt really good to allow and accept blessings. At that moment I remembered again that there is nothing but love, even if I sometimes forget. I love opening up, tapping into and allowing myself to connect to the Divin...

 (This article was first published in May 2007 Metta Center email newsletter. While the birds were long gone now, the message of the article still holds true in my heart today. I invite you to consider the miracle that YOU are!) My family and I have been watching a bird making a nest on top of a beam under our eaves. We think it is the future mama bird that is making the nest. There is a red one (we think this is the papa bird) who is always nearby singing to her as she works. It has been four days now since the birds started their nest, and we've seen how the nest is built piece by piece from blades of dried grass, small twigs, dried forget-me-nots. The colors are really lovely, a little baby blue from the flowers, green from the grass and soft greys from the twigs. (I wonder if the mama bird thought of color swatches as she builts her nest!) When I see how much care she is putting into preparing and creating a home for the new lives that are coming, I feel very touched and ...

"Sitting quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself" ~ Zen Proverb "Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems." ~ Rainer Maria Rilke As I started my day this morning, I was spell-bound by the brilliant display of flowers all around my home. In the Bay Area, spring has definitely sprung! Everywhere I looked, blossoms have burst in a profusion of colors: white, magenta, blue, purple, yellow, orange, red, and pink. Young grasses of verdant green dance in the soft breeze. Delicate new leaves are poking out of bare branches where they have slept through winter. I am witnessing life in its full splendor and spring regalia. So glorious, indeed! I invite you to allow yourself to get away from your desk, from the unfinished busy-ness in your day, and go out and greet spingtime with open arms and delighted eyes. Abandon your worries and obligations, and replace them with a sense of joy and ease, even for just a short...

I love working with angels and beings of light. They are powerful yet gentle beings. They are willing and happy to help us release difficulties and bringing more peace into our lives. However, because they respect the law of free will, they can't interfere with our lives unless we specifically ask for their assistance. I teach this technique of clearing dysfunctional and imbalanced etheric cords in my Angel Healing workshops. I feel inspired to share with you this easy and effective process to work with the angels. Etheric cords are invisible energetic cords we form with people we are in relationship with. You can envision these cords as telephone lines made of energy. These cords facilitate the movement of energy between people and form a higher means of communication. Cording takes places at an unconscious level. Energetically, you are wired to establish a cord to those you are in relationship with. It doesn’t happen when you just pass a stranger. The exchange of energy is...

"A Child of Crossing Places." I simply love this phrase! It touches me in such a beautiful and moving way. I first heard this phrase when reading "The Seeing Stone," by Kevin Crossley-Holland. It's a young-adult book, and it's about a young boy named Arthur who is given a magical seeing stone. In the book, “crossing places” refers to places where one aspect of life meets another, such as the shorelines, sunsets or sunrises, butterfly cocoons, seasons, and others. Crossing places are mysterious, full of potential, unpredictable and transformative. Our inner conflicts are like these crossing places: two seemingly different and conflicting forces of interests. Unlike nature, however, we often feel uncomfortable with our “crossing places,” wishing that they were not there. We can learn from nature’s ample examples to help us resolve our inner conflicts gracefully. Instead of having to choose sides or somehow force both sides of our inner battles to work...

"Your hand opens and closes and opens and closes. If it were always a fist or always stretched open, you would be paralyzed. Your deepest presence is in every small contracting and expanding, the two as beautifully balanced and coordinated as bird wings." ~ Rumi "You are good when you walk to your goal firmly and with bold steps. Yet you are not evil when you go thither limping. Even those who limp go not backward. But you who are strong and swift, see that you do not limp before the lame, deeming it kindness." ~ Kahlil Gibran "Change is created by those whose imaginations are bigger than their circumstances." ~ Unknown source

In one of my recent meditations, I was reminded by Spirit that we bring the energy of hope and love onto the planet, by allowing ourselves to be happy and appreciative of our lives. Like the rain that comes in spring time, inviting seeds to grow into seedlings, our feelings of happiness and appreciation nurture the energetic seedlings of hope and wholeness for the collective consciousness. When I asked how we can best support those who are affected by the latest current events (Japan, Middle East, etc.) Spirit answered, "Appreciate them."  How can our feelings of happiness and appreciation help anyone, or make any significant contribution, especially to people who live far away? At the energetic level, when we allow ourselves to be happy and feel appreciative, we feel amazing! And this beautiful, radiant energy invites everyone across the globe to rise up to that vibration as well. This life-giving energy helps others on the planet permit themselves to hope and love d...

No matter how we choose to cleanse, clear, and heal our body and energy field, it is vitally important to do so regularly. Just as we have physical hygiene, it is really important to have energetic hygiene to maintain our well-being spiritually, mentally and emotionally. We live in a psychic soup. One way to clear our energy field from psychic debris that accumulate is to use Violet Flame Meditation. Violet Flame is a gift from Saint Germain to our world. It is an energy of a high vibration that transmutes all negativity within us into positive energy. I find it best if you keep an attitude of appreciation and a beginner's mind when you first do this spiritual practice so you can fully experience the subtle changes in your energy field. To do this meditation: Get into a comfortable position and close your eyes. Breathe deeply and easily. Quietly, say a decree invoking the violet flame: “Divine Presence and Saint Germain, please charge Violet Flame in, through, and about m...

(This article was first published in the January 2006 issue of Metta Center Newsletter.) When you allow yourself to be enchanted, you are saying yes to life. Saying yes to life opens doors for opportunities and inspirations. Saying yes to life means you are in alignment with the flow of life. Saying yes to life means spending less energy resisting, thus, less pain and suffering. Saying yes to life connects you to your own spirit. You experience more ease, peace and joy. When I feel stuck or restless, I recognize this as signs that I have been in resistance. My old pattern was to grit my teeth and stick it out. “Don't give up, keep at it!” I would think to myself. It was not an option to give myself 5 minutes to pause and to do something that enchant me, whether to admire a beautiful flower, or look at the sky, or feel the breeze or listen to nature. By persistently pushing, I ended up spending a lot of energy in getting myself out of whatever it was that I was stuck in, and not ...

May you easily find yourself surrounded by and recall the feeling of fresh beginnings, a sense of new and wonderful possibilities coming your way, the spirit of joy, and the expectations of hopes fulfilled all year round! A dear friend has forwarded this beautiful music to me as a New Year's gift. Listening to Eric Whitacre's angelic Virtual Choir, "Lux Arumque," transported me to a heavenly realm. May this beautiful and magnificent expression of the spirit of humanity be a gift to you as well. To find out more about this amazing story of how people from all over the world has come together and made this sublime choir: http://ericwhitacre.com/the-virtual-choir . With love and blessings now and throughout the year, Christine

One of my dear clients asked me to join a little experiment in appreciation. We spend a minute each day, at 9pm exactly, to send appreciation to each other and ourselves. This circle now is 3 people strong, and you are invited to join us if you would like to participate in this beautiful experience that transcends time and space. If you would like to join us, it's easy: Set an intention to join the appreciation circle for one minute at 9pm every night. You don't need to know anyone in the circle to join. When we send out appreciation, it is a well-being wish. It is one of the most potent forms of prayer. You can send your appreciation about life, people in your life, or about yourself in whatever way that feels right to you. There's no right or wrong way to do it. A general attitude of gratitude is fine, a simple thankful thought is fine, you can simply wish well-being to yourself, others and the whole Universe... Truly, whatever feels best for you at the time is ...

I was walking in the meadow up the hills from my house, communing with Nature, when I found myself singing a ditty I made up at the spot. "It's getting greener every day," was what I sang to the grass. Then, as I was basking in the feeling of pure joy, celebrating the grass, the song morphed into, "There is more love every day..." When I first noticed that the words had changed by themselves, I stopped singing. But, in the next breath, I found myself smiling even bigger and so I decided to sing it all the way home, "There is more love every day..." It was so much fun! I felt brilliantly alive and grand like a majestic oak tree. I was deliriously happy! I don't think it's because the song I was singing was going to be a hit song by any means. Interestingly, later on the same day, I read Tapas Fleming's wise words in her newsletter: "When we're actually luxuriating in who we really are, we're not having problems and there a...

As November rolls to an end, the holiday season is also just around the corner for many people. For some, the festive season can bring added stress as well as painful memories. There are many ways to manage the holiday season so that you can enjoy the season with more ease, grace and peace. Here are some tips: Set your intention as to how you would like to feel during the holiday season. Decide what activities you would enjoy doing. Let go of or delegate activities you don't enjoy. If you find yourself feeling resentful or uptight, use EFT and tap.  If painful memories come up, acknowledge your feelings. Use EFT to help dissolve these painful memories and bring more peace to yourself.  Eat healthily, avoid sugars and alcohol as much as possible. Just because festivities are typically associated with these substances, doesn't mean your body does well with them.   Take time to nurture yourself with quiet moments to journal, walk in nature, and breathe fully and co...

Giving thanks to all the good in our lives can be done every day, as I am sure you all do in one fashion or another. We can do it quite effortlessly with a simple nod, a wink, a pat, a thought, a smile, a hug, a "thanks!", a kiss, a dance, an appreciative whoop -- all are ways to express appreciation. The best thing about appreciating someone or something is that we can't help but tuned into the energy of love. As we tune into that vibration of love, we are not only the generator but also the recipient of this beautiful connective energy. It really is an amazing feeling to be giving and receiving love in the same instant! I was recently in a meeting where the person I was meeting with brought her two-year old son along. He was a VERY shy boy, and didn't say a word during the entire one-hour meeting. For a young child, one hour must feel like an eternity. He tried to amuse himself as best as he could, playing with his yellow toy bus as he positioned himself close ...

You take a little seed, plant it, water it, and fertilize it for a whole year, and nothing happens. The second year you water and fertilize it, and nothing happens. The third year you water it and fertilize it, and nothing happens. How discouraging this becomes! The fourth year you water it and fertilize it, and nothing happens. This is very frustrating. The fifth year you continue to water and fertilize the seed and then sometime during the fifth year, the Chinese bamboo tree sprouts and grows ninety feet in six weeks! Sometimes, our healing journey and growth process can feel like the story above. Nothing happens after all this work! Have heart. Allow time for the process itself. In other words, what may appear to be "not working" or "not healing" is often a deeper need to experience growth, learning lessons of patience or receiving, learning to appreciate the present, learning to respect and care for yourself, and so on. And, at the end of this nurturi...

Everything you see has its roots in the unseen world. The forms may change,     yet the essence remains the same. Every wondrous sight will vanish, every sweet word will fade.     But do not be disheartened, The Source they come from is eternal— growing, branching out,     giving new life and new joy. Why do you weep?— That Source is within you, and this whole world     is springing up from it. The Source is full, its waters are ever-flowing;     Do not grieve,     drink your fill! Don't think it will ever run dry— This is the endless Ocean! From the moment you came into this world, a ladder was placed in front of you     that you might transcend it. From earth, you became plant, from plant you became animal. Afterwards you became a human being, endowed with knowledge, intellect and faith. Behold the body, born of dust—     how perfect ...

I was sitting in contemplation when an inner voice said to me, "Do you realize that we often criticize ourselves when we make the smallest mistakes, and we don't celebrate ourselves or feel proud of ourselves until we accomplish something 'grand,' whatever that thing is? And, when we finally reach that big-goal, often after much stress and effort, before we even have time to savor our success and celebrate ourselves, we immediately give ourselves the next thing to do. We are bad if make a small mistake and only good if we make a good, huge, achievement. Don't you think that is out of balance when we do so to ourselves?" Hm, a good point, I thought. Looking at my own life, I can see places and times where I did just that, I got upset with myself for a small mistake and I didn't even realize when I did something significantly important for myself, my family or the world around me. Have you done that? Do you do so often? Well, how about joining me in...

A client, who is currently in Japan, emailed me her personal experience. It is such a beautiful story, I want to share it with all of you. Thank you, N.M., for giving me the permission to include it in this newsletter! It was a long weekend, so we went to Kyoto to our favorite temples. I went to the Tenryuji temple, which is the Zen Buddhist temple, but it was so crowded-I didn't feel that peaceful. My Buddhist monk moment came right here, in Okayama, in front of Big Camera, one of the biggest electronic stores. Often times, I see monks doing a standing chant in random places with a bowl for donations. (They are holding it, so it must make their arm sour -- that what I think about.) There was one in front of the Big Camera.  It was so hot, and I kind of felt sorry for him since nobody was giving any money, so I gave him 1000 yen (about 10 dollars) as I was walking, without slowing down. Then he yelled, "Stop!" And when I approached, I saw his monk hat had duct ta...