We had the mailing for the April Horizons today, and I surprised myself by getting some of the billing done before everyone got here.  It feels good to have that part of the job done each month.  Now I get to sit outside and enjoy the weather and watch the sun go down, without having anything else to do or anywhere else to go.  Nice!  Right now I’m sitting in my west woods, in what is typically known as the firepit area, however there is no fire tonight.  It’s very windy and my favorite big giant kitty Izzy is sitting here with me.  I can hear several sets of birds all around me, and can see the plaster Buddha winking at me as the sun sends shadows thru the mulberry leaves across his face.

I don’t see any squirrels out right now, but they are usually over here closer to sunset.  They’re probably in the east woods right now, or in the mulberry or loquat trees in the backyard.  I’ve been watering the bay tree, the eucalyptus and 2 young oaks in the firepit area here and they are really growing quickly.  Everything in my yard has new growth on it.  This is definitely a favorite time of year for me.  This is when I remember all over again why I love living here.

I’ve been revamping my finances.  I called my one credit card company to see what kind of interest rate my card would go to when its 0% runs out next month.  I think they are all willing to negotiate because they don’t want to lose anyone’s business.  That’s good news for us.  Last year I made extra payments on my big balance cards, so now it’s all nicely manageable.

That’s one of the best things I ever did for myself, was to learn to enjoy keeping up with and organizing my finances so I always know what I owe and to whom.  That way I don’t forget anything and don’t “accidentally” get myself in debt I’m not prepared to take on.  I think I’m lucky I learned my lesson early on about debt and credit.  It’s such a relief to not have that to worry about.

My suggestion to everyone is: pay off your high interest credit cards as quickly as you can.  Make a game of it, to see how quickly it can happen and what creative ways you can think of to make extra money.  Change your lifestyle for 6 months and put every extra cent toward paying down some item of debt you have.  Don’t look at it as denying yourself a treat, but rather, ask which choice will bring you closer to the financial freedom you seek, and make your choice from there.

I’m hopeful about the stock market and really wrestled with myself before liquidating an investment in order to clear out debt.  I like being in the market because it gives infinite potential for the Universe to deliver to me in the form of dollars, whether now or down the road.  Pulling it out removes that avenue, but the idea of me paying off a particular debt so excited me that I did it.  And yes, while it did remove a safety blanket, the trade-off in the freedom I felt was so worth it.

And if I think my dollars can only come to me in the form of that particular investment, or only from my job, that is very limited thinking on my part.  If I start thinking, well, there are no rich relatives going to die and leave me anything, then I simply have a very limited understanding of how the Universe works and my part in attracting the reality I experience.

The worst things that ever happened to me?  I never anticipated them.  The best, most amazing things that have ever happened to me?  I could never have imagined them.  I just know that when I place my faith in knowing that it always works out better than I ever expected, I know I’ll be just fine.  This has been on my refrigerator since the 70’s:

“I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year
‘Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.’
And he replied, ‘Go into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”
From “The Gate of the Year” by Minnie Haskins 1908