Jan 8, 2018

Seeing Is Believing

Right now, today I just want to focus on affirmations for 2018. When you read, you’re exercising your ability to create in your mind and in your energy. If you reread these affirmations over and over (in your head) you will begin to raise your frequency closer to the reality of these things. Once you believe it, that’s when you see/achieve it. I like to use affirmations when thinking about my goals. I was always taught to claim my blessings before the time came to even have them. So I️ use the same idea with my goals. I’ve worked hard without believing and achieved what felt like nothing. I’ve worked minimal with believing and achieved what felt like everything. I encourage you mostly to believe that you can achieve the goals you set for yourself and that will in turn give you what you need to begin moving in the right direction toward those goals.

-I affirm for us in 2018 that we will heal from our past pains and pay forward with an abundance of love and light.
-I affirm that this year will be the year of reaping blessings and harvesting fruit from the seeds we’ve planted and nurtured throughout the years.
-I affirm this year we wake up from dormancy and we are propelled forward by the energy we have manifested.
-I affirm that toxicity be removed from our beings so we can utilize and evolve into our full potential.
-I affirm we become more connected with ourselves so that our connections with others can be strong and full of growth.
-I affirm that no weapon formed against us shall prosper.

In closing I would like to share another form of affirmations that begin with “I Am.” What I️ really like about these is that it truly feels as if you are embodying these truths by identifying with self. When praying/affirming for others along with myself I say “We are.” But for the sake of individuals I’ll present I am;

-I am a being of light and abundance
-I am strong and capable
-I am eternal
-I am blessed
-I am because (s)he [God] is.
-I am a product of the most high.
-I am healthy
-I am alive
-I am loved
-I am free
-I AM!!!!!

Affirmations can be put together however you like. It’s just a form of speaking positive to yourself, believing in the good of the world even if you don’t always see it. The beauty of the energy you create while saying these things inside your being is the law of attraction. You WILL begin to see/feel a product of your energy more and more as you manifest it. I affirm nothing but blessings, peace, love, health and abundance over us all year!! NAMASTE.

Author- Ariana McBride 

Dec 18, 2017

Love Without Conditions

As a young, independent and thriving female trying to make her place in such a big world, love is something I’ve yet to truly figure out. Love is a very powerful feeling that shapes the way people respond to one another. I feel as though we categorize Love in order to regulate how it’s given. Maybe it’s because I’m young but I feel like love is something that should be more normal. We generalize love in a romantic way when in reality it’s just a way to reflect one’s admiration and respect for another. Oftentimes I find myself in an awkward position with people that combine love with affection when I’m just genuinely trying to express gratitude toward them. Love is something that comes natural to me in abundance because I do my best to reflect the God in me at all times. Im a firm believer that love is all we need in this crazy, sick, twisted yet beautiful world we live in. The lack of love and misconception of it is where I see the opportunity for all the madness. I think of love simply as a penetrating force that sheds light on even the darkest places. I was always told that to love someone is to understand them. As a result of that and my empathetic nature, I’ve been molded into a very compassionate person. The instant my mind goes to a place of judgement, I’ve conditioned myself to instead consider the possibilities of what said person may be going through that’s led them to where they are now. Instead of thinking of them as a stranger, an acquaintance or any other label that would cause me to love them a little less, I reflect as if it were me or someone I love. If it was someone I loved being bullied, I would say and do something. If it were someone I loved on the street hungry, begging for money or food, I would feed them or give what I could. If it were me… I’d want someone to love me enough to help. I don’t think love is at all closely related to the way it’s portrayed in society. Love is something you have to just do and be, it’s not something you pick and choose when to use. Even in romance, love is something you use most when you come across the flaws and potential of another. This brings life to more specifically, unconditional love- which is the love of God. I struggle with staying in tune with my reality of love because of how others perceive it and/or use it against me. I believe a lot of people use love more as a manipulation tactic than a genuine act. Love becomes conditional when we only love with expectation. Whereas, in my natural state I just love. I am love. It’s all love. The idea is to plant a seed, be sure to water it from time-to-time, let life shine on it and watch it grow to fruition.

Author- Ariana McBride 

Oct 16, 2017

The Power Of Today

Everyday is a day to be grateful for, especially today. Today you have the power to enforce change for the greater good of yourself and the world. Your dreams have the potential to be made into reality. Let go of all expectation and just gladly be and do today. Express your gratitude for as many things that you can. Be your own ripple in the wave of today. Let the light shine through your every move. Believe that you are capable of anything you put your mind to. Hold yourself accountable for the role you play in the lives of others. Genuinely take part in your life today. Take control of the time you have, make every second count. Do things out of the kindness of your heart and let it fill you with an abundance to continue to give what you have to offer. Show the world how powerful your existence is. You have a purpose, and it differs from everyone around you because of the personalized characteristics that make you who you are. You posses energy that you can transform and distribute how you’d like. Everything that you do contributes to the grand scheme of life. Eliminate the idea in your mind that makes you believe that you don’t impact the lives of others. Your life unfolds in proportion to your courage, be courageous today. Have the courage to do something you may have never done before, observe the change it creates in your life. Take a moment to breathe, and just be thankful. Instead of focusing energy on your problems, find refuge in your blessings and let it bring forth natural solutions. Reflect on the person you want to grow to be and understand the changes that have to be made in order to become that person. Today  is a day you will never get back, today is YOUR day. Love the life you live and that will lead you to a life you love. Today is the beginning of the rest of your life, which direction do you want to go?

Oct 13, 2017

The Journey To Pure Consciousness

Being the change we want to see in the world requires that we look beyond the surface of ourselves in order to encompass that change. This presents one of our greatest challenges because it inevitably takes us out of our comfort zone. We grow so comfortable in our ways, that we become afraid of the idea of change. Since change is required to grow toward our full potential, by the time change is necessary we create illusions to avoid self-reflection. As a result, we get stuck in the same position no matter how hard we try to move forward. History repeats itself because illusions cause us to find different ways to head back to the same place. By the time we reach familiar signs, the damage has already been done and prosperity is that much harder. It takes a change of perspective to be able to  analyze where you might have went wrong. The ironic thing about reality is that you have the power to change it. We shape our physical reality through our mental. With only a few seconds of focusing your attention on a subject, the Law of Attraction begins to respond. Within 17 seconds of focusing on something, a matching vibration becomes activated. Now, when you repeatedly return to a pure thought, lasting at least 68 seconds, in a short period of time ( hours in some cases, or a few days in others), that thought becomes a dominant thought. Once achieving a dominant thought, you will experience manifestations until you change it. We live in an energetic universe that brings karma to life. The energy that you put out is the energy that you will receive sevenfold because it travels through multiple sources. We are all one and everything we think and do has its’ own ripple in the wave of mankind. As the momentum of a wave progresses through like sources, so does its’ strength. The more we indulge in a particular thing or thought, the stronger it’s influence becomes. At times we grow overwhelmed by these energies and tend to isolate ourselves to better prioritize them. If our intentions are pure and we reflect on our own involvement, we begin a positive state of reinforcement. We transform and channel certain energies to specific energy centers in our bodies called Chakras. If we are not proactive and involved, the energy takes on a life of its’ own and we become a victim to ourselves. Our physical reality consists of 4 dimensions; forward/backward, up/down, left/right and time. The “in, out” dimension refers to the being inside you that can hear and talk without sound waves, feel without sense of touch and see beyond time. This, is where true power may lie dormant if you’re living on the sidelines of your life watching the game pass you by. Deprivation of love and positivity is a sure way to waste the integrity of your mind. Love is one of the strongest forces to be reckoned with, it can purify the most tainted of beings. Fill yourself with love and let it pour out of you, genuinely. Unconditional love is the essence of pure consciousness. I encourage you to do more research on Chakra, meditation, yoga, and pure consciousness in order to become more familiar of the different ways to understand what you’re manifesting subconsciously and be more active in your conscious mind.

Oct 9, 2017

The Light Within YOU

There is a plan for your life. No matter how many times or how far you stray away from it, it will always be calling you to it. Those moments of uncertainty is a calling of reflection. Always reflect on where you are, what you’re doing, where you want to be and what it takes for you to get there. Nobody ever said life was easy, and that’s because it isn’t. There are a lot of things that are going to stand in your way that you will have to hurtle over. You may be struggling now, you may struggle tomorrow, but the greatness that awaits you is always there. What makes you happy? What skill have you been blessed with that you can in turn bless the world with? Those skills are a part of your calling. It may just be a hobby that you like to experiment with in your spare time.  What sparks the worlds interest in you? When you do something you love and that you are passionate about, no one can replicate that. They may be able to be in the same field as you, but they are not you and can not bring what you can bring to the table. The foundation of this success is built upon your mindset. Your mind is your weapon, and an awful thing to waste. You can be your best friend, or your worst enemy. Use your mind, heart, and spirit to your advantage. In the words of Buddha, “what you think; you become. what you feel;  you attract, & what you imagine is what you create.” Do not compare yourself to others, you are your own form of beauty and greatness. Perspective is key. You can look at one situation a thousand different ways. You can change your world by changing your thoughts. Humble yourself. Frederick Douglass once said “You are not judged by the height you have risen, but by the depth you have climbed.”  Life is not about what happens to you, it is about how you move through it and overcome your obstacles. Through pain, strength is created and utilized in its best form. Instead of dwelling on the darkness, be the light if you can’t find it anywhere around you. Keep moving forward, walking in faith and believing that you can be as great as you want to be. Each day that you wake up is another chance to go after what you really desire. Every day is christmas, and every night is new years eve. You are constantly blessed with new beginnings and opportunities. Never stop educating yourself, knowledge will always equal power. When you learn something new, apply it to your life and pay attention to the change it brings. It’s one thing to think about doing something and another thing to actually do it. You may genuinely want to do something and don’t know where to start. The first thing you do is put it on paper, look at in physical form. Create goals to reach and don’t underestimate what it takes to accomplish it. Trust and be patient with the process. Everything takes time and effort. You may not get instant gratification but that is okay, do not quit. Claim your victory, affirm to yourself that you will get there, no weapon formed against you shall prosper. You must arrive at your destination before your life does. We live in an energetic universe. What you put out into the world is what will come back to you, sevenfold.  The universe aligns you with people, things and situations that match the energy you put out. The more you improve yourself and raise your vibration, the more you will see things that are beneficial to your well-being. A part of humbling yourself is putting your ego in check. The ego says “ I shouldn’t have to suffer,” that thought makes you suffer so much more. It is a distortion of the truth, which is always paradoxical. The truth is that you need to say yes to suffering before you can transcend it. Not in the sense of; “yes let me suffer,” but more of “yes, I may suffer, but the greatness that awaits me thereafter will bring me greater joy.” Suffering has a noble purpose: the evolution of consciousness and the burning of ego. Frederick Keonig said it best, “We tend to forget happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.” Your life unfolds in proportion to your courage. So do not let fear or doubt consume you to the point that you procrastinate.  Although it is never too late, it will be much more challenging for you to overcome the mindset that led you into procrastination in the first place. Love yourself, and your neighbor. It may seem hard, but with the right perspective it becomes extremely easy. Love is the one thing people truly can’t ignore within themselves. Love is a powerful energy that pierces through the coldest hearts and darkest minds. The special thing about other people no matter who they are or where they are in  life, is that there’s always something you can learn from them. Whether it’s from a good situation or a bad one, there’s something great to be taken away from every one of them. If you know God, you know that he works in the most mysterious ways. One of the most common ways i’ve experienced myself, was through other people. The nectar of compassion is so wonderful. If you are committed to keeping it alive, then you are protected. What the other person does, or says will not ignite the anger in you, because compassion is the real antidote for anger. Those judgements you have a hard time getting rid of, are actually a reflection of how you see yourself. We tend to make these judgements not realizing they go hand-in-hand with our own behavior. That is another reason why reflection is so important. It’s easy to put your time and energy into other peoples issues than it is your own. Be constructive, not deconstructive. You can hear without vibrations of sound, see without eyes, talk without tongue, and feel without being touched. You are a force to be reckoned with. Life works according to your consciousness. You are more than just a shell, you are a being. In order to tap into that being you have to indulge in the spirit, not the flesh. When the being speaks, all nature and the universe responds. Now, GO BE GREAT! MUCH LOVE, NAMASTE.

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Oct 6, 2017

The Peace To The Puzzle

Joseph Clements

My Papa, Joseph Clements was born Charles Fiedler in October of 1933 in Detroit. When he was 3 years old he was given up for adoption. He was adopted by Bessie and Charles Clements who gave him the name Joseph. The mystery of his biological family would haunt him until he was well into his 80s. He was such a vibrant, upbeat person even in his old age. He valued family more than anyone I’ve ever witnessed to this day. He had 6 children of his own, one of which he met at 83 yrs. old and took on a lot of people as family throughout his years. He didn’t sugarcoat much, was always very verbal about his opinions and contribution of wisdom. His legacy consisted of being a huge part of the church for many years, owning his own business, working in GM until retirement, serving for his country, but most of all his love of family. He had such a way of expressing himself and he gave the credit to growing up an only child with white skin and black parents. Growing up in the times that he did, he faced a lot of different obstacles that he never let take control of his life. He had fairer skin. So much so, that in the early 50s, he would be kicked out of “colored-only” bars.  For years, I remember hearing my grandfather ponder on the existence of his biological family.

 

In 2014, at 81 years old, Papa finally received his real birth certificate listing his parents as Paul

Paul Smith

Smith and Evelyn Fiedler. At which time, he proceeded to get their death certificates that listed next of kin. During this time, through Ancestry.com we began to find more answers. We found and became in contact with both the Smith and Fiedlers’ side of the family. For the first time, my Papa was meeting his family in the flesh. The joy in his heart and eyes still makes me happy to this day. Paul was a black man and Evelyn was a white woman. He had a biological sister, Mary Joy who recently passed and had been looking for him all her life. By his half-sister, we were told that at some point Paul became under the impression that his only son was dead and it effected the remainder of his life tremendously. I remember the day we were invited to his nieces’ home to eat and look over pictures of the family we never knew, it was a very emotional day for us all. He was even gifted with hats Paul always wore. We had connected with Pauls’ family in Detroit and wanted to truly connect with Evelyns’ side, but to our surprise we weren’t as welcome. Story goes that Evelyn put him up for adoption, she moved on to have another family with a white man. Not that it made much difference to us, we just wanted to connect with our long lost family. Papa actually went and was able to sit down and talk to Evelyns’ eldest daughter, his half-sister, for a short time and later received a letter with photos of her. The letter was a request not to contact the family again. We arrived at a very crucial time in their lives as their loved one, who would have been Papas’ half brother Dennis, had just passed. Through the grapevine, the younger generation of the Fiedler family became aware of my grandfathers’ existence and wanted to reach out regardless of their elders’ opinion. His nieces, Pam and Lisa Christianson and Nephew Dave Lowin traveled across Michigan to visit him for the remainder of his life.

 

Not very long after meeting his family he was diagnosed with stage 4 bladder cancer. This was a very challenging time we all had to grow through as a family. The common goal of promoting the longevity of his life and being moral support brought us all closer together. I remember my grandfather so bluntly saying that he was ready to go on to see the Lord and didn’t want to go through chemo. We all struggled with the idea of chemo, but wanted to prolong and enhance the quality of his life so we took interest into healthier, more natural alternatives. Papas’ diagnosis caused a ripple effect in our lives, we couldn’t look at things the same. Through everything, how happy and grateful he was just to have us around truly challenged our perception of what happiness is. For a long time he felt there was something missing. But the whole time, he was the peace to the puzzle.