Hello and welcome to the February 2007 edition of Horizons Magazine.

Each month as I approach the deadline for the next issue of Horizons, there is final layout where I often don’t leave the house the entire week, staying glued to the computer 14-16 hours a day, working happily away. A few days into my final layout week for the February magazine, my monitor stopped working. Aaaauggh! In the middle of several critical tasks - and after 5pm - the screen went blank! I checked all the connections. Nothing. I knew it was the Universe’s was of making me take a break and “get a new window on the world.” Another lifestyle upgrade to add to my year 2007.

I couldn’t just go online and price search since I didn’t have my monitor. This was a major purchase and I didn’t want to pay too much or make a bad choice. So I immediately sat for a moment to take stock of where I was emotionally and vibrationally before I took any physical action. I got quiet and tuned in and thought, “OK, what do I know?” “I know that even when ‘bad’ things happen to me, they are not all that bad. I am due for a new monitor anyway. I know I am always good at finding bargains and getting especially good prices for new equipment.” Those thoughts felt good, so I recognized that as a signal from my emotional guidance system that I was on the right track. The right track to attracting a good result in the situation in question. The right track to making a wise purchase despite the fact that I didn’t have time to research it ahead of time.

“What else do I know? I know that I have good luck with equipment, it lasts me a long time despite almost constant use.” Ahh, that thought felt good as well. Since I was feeling hopeful and headed in the right direction, I knew that all I had to do next was put my body in motion and Spirit would guide me to a successful conclusion. I jumped in my car and headed toward town and on the way called my computer guru, Chuck. He was home *yay* Chuck suggested where I might look and what to look for. Two hours after my “crisis” began, the new monitor was hooked up and I was back to work. Yay!

So basically the Universe knew I could use a two hour break from final layout, and wanted me to start the new year with a fresh filter, a fresh screen. Only there was one thing wrong with this fresh screen. This monitor, at 19”, was 2” wider than my former monitor, so the display looked somewhat fish eyed and the colors appeared very faded. I was unable to install the proper driver for the new monitor until after final layout was over since I needed Chuck’s help to do it. The instructions for adjusting the display using the controls on the monitor were not helpful. This left me having to guess what was really going on in the document I was working on, leaving me working just a little bit blind.

I thought how often I do that in my everyday life too, what a great metaphor that was for me. For example, the strips of color on the calendar pages 35-37. I know from memory and from looking at a copy of the magazine in print what those colors are. I know how dark the colors are and I know they are each 14% saturation. However on the new monitor, the colors appear so faded that to see the color as I wanted it to appear in print, it had to be 35+% saturation! So I knew that I could not darken the color strips, that it was really just an error that would be corrected once the proper driver was installed. To darken the color so I could see it well on the screen would make it way, way, way too dark on the printed page you’re holding in your hand. I just had to figure out how to place the colors without actually seeing them in front of me. Interesting task!

A lot of energy work is like that, often you are working blind. Not everyone sees the energy field, or aura, even experienced practitioners. And by the way, not everyone who tells you they see it really see it *smile*

But it’s not necessary to see it in order to work effectively within in. You just have to hold in mind what you know to be the Truth, despite what you see or don’t see before you. With continued practice, at some point you will begin to sense or see the energetic field more tangibly, so the blindness is temporary. Just as my monitor malfunction was temporary and was resolved the following week.

My challenge was getting the February magazine done on time without being distracted by how the colors appeared on my display. My challenge was to hold in mind what I knew to be the truth of what the background colors looked liked, despite being barely able to discern them.

In my daily life, my biggest challenge is to do the same thing: to hold in mind the Truth of my Being, despite worldly circumstances. To hold in mind the background of a loving Universe that is responsive to my thoughts, and that all things are possible. To hold this background in mind no matter what I see in front of me, that is my biggest daily challenge.

But I’ve learned that the longer I am able to hold these background thoughts, the easier it becomes to hold them. Once it becomes easy to hold those thoughts, then very little comes into my life that is not a good experience.

The more often I hold those thoughts, despite what I see on tv or in the movies, the more often I want to hold thoughts of a pleasant and peaceful nature. And thus I attract even more pleasant, peaceful thoughts.

When I begin having peaceful thoughts, I automatically begin having a more peaceful life. The people and circumstances that no longer add to my peace or pleasure slowly fade away from my experience.

So I’ve learned that if I am not having a peaceful or enjoyable life, it’s time to prime the pump by thinking some of my own pleasant thoughts until I can attract other good thoughts. Call them affirmations, call them positive aspects, call them anything you want. I call them replacement thoughts and I have an entire bank of scripts I’ve made for myself, and I make sure to practice them several times a day. I know they work because I can see my life changing, and I am being guided ever upward into more joy and satisfaction.

One of my favorite Abraham-Hicks’ quotes is: “When you withdraw your attention from those things that are not pleasing, and you put your attention upon those things that are pleasing, those pleasing things begin to become more abundant, and those not-pleasing things become more rare. Until, eventually, those not-pleasing things cannot be part of your experience because you will have eliminated your attraction factor from your vibration. What you think and what you get always matches.”

Another favorite Abraham-Hicks’ quote is: “It’s not about years. It’s not about age. It’s not about youth., It’s about decline. And decline is about alignment, or not. Decline is about, in this moment, which way am I forking? In this moment, which way am I forking? In this moment, which way am I forking? That’s all it’s about. What makes people decline is that they start forking in the direction that doesn’t allow them to be the receivers of the never-ending Stream of Well-Being. You don’t have to decline... “Happy, healthy, happy, healthy, happy, healthy, dead!” That’s Esther’s plan...”

And that’s my plan, too. And I know if that is to happen, it is up to me to begin to pre-pave it now. It is up to me to withdraw my attention from those things that are not pleasing and to keep my attention on those things that are pleasing. It is up to me to catch myself when I begin a downward spiral, and to pivot my thoughts toward what pleasant next thing I’d like to have happen. To keep myself forking in the direction of what feels good, in the direction that allows me to be a receiver of the never-ending Stream of Well-Being. So far it’s working just fine *smile*

I’ve had many people ask why they saw Abraham-Hicks in The Secret and yet when they ordered their own copy of the DVD, they received an extended version that excluded Abraham-Hicks. The actual letter from Hicks is online but basically it seems that Hicks agreed to an initial contract which stated The Secret would be broadcast free on tv simultaneously in different countries. Later, the producers decided otherwise and wanted all participants to sign a new marketing contract. Hicks decided to opt out to keep it simple.

That’s the mark of an authentic teacher - not caring who gets the credit. Knowing that their ‘source’ goes far beyond the confines of any one particular contract, or one particular employer, or one particular investment. They know that they attract their financial resources for material supply as a result of their overall vibrational stance, and their absence of resistance - on all topics. It is all connected.

So this month I’ve learned or been reminded of:

I never know where I will receive guidance from or in what form it will take.

Each seemingly small, incidental happening in my life contains a profound insight into a significant area of my life.

I can discover this insight if I contemplate the metaphor.
Hold in mind what I know to be the Truth, despite what I see or don’t see before me.

Hold in mind the background of a loving Universe that is responsive to my thoughts, and that all things are possible.

The longer I am able to hold hopeful and pleasant background thoughts, the easier it becomes to hold them.

Once it becomes easy to hold hopeful thoughts, then very little comes into my life that is not a good experience.

When I begin having peaceful thoughts, I automatically begin having a more peaceful life.

If I am not having an enjoyable life, it’s time to prime the pump by scripting and thinking my own pleasant thoughts, on purpose.

If I want to have an enjoyable future, it is up to me to begin to pre-pave it now.

It is up to me to keep my attention on those things that are pleasing to think about.

It is up to me to keep myself forking in the direction of what feels good.

It’s amazing what gets done when it doesn’t matter who gets the credit.

My source goes far beyond the confines of any one particular contract, or one particular employer, or one particular investment.

I attract my financial resources as a result of my overall vibrational stance, and state of allowing.

Enjoy our offering this month.
Life is good! Hari Om.