Rebel Evolve: Katarsis.
March 25, 2013 § Leave a Comment
Rebel Evolve: Katarsis is a seven-week free Online Course. Join me and others as we explore seven weeks of fostering a healthy lifestyle. Beginning tomorrow, we will start by rebel evolving and focusing on Katarsis. By joining me in committing to this practice you are saying “yes” to a lifestyle shift to be in Truth.
Katarsism is the trinity clarification, or “clearing out”, of toxins out of the self and ego to reside in consciousness. In short, cleansing the trinity–body/mind/spirit–to reside in the strength of the soul, which is Truth.
This occurs in 5 purifying steps:
1. Body: Healing of the physical; physical injuries, genetic deficiencies, and dis-ease. See Jesus’ healing of people (blind, deaf, leprosy, dead). Daily practice: Yoga, balancing movement and repose.
2. Strength (Vital Energy): Cleansing of the energy; detoxification of toxins from what you have consumed or breathed/soaked in. Animal products are no longer consumed. This clears out negative vital influence (aka otherness from nature, animals, and other humans). Also, see Jesus casting out demons. Daily practice: Cleanses, Plant-based diet.
3. Mind: The correcting of the mind. This clears out negative mental otherness (aka otherness from other humans, past funk). Daily practice: Prayer, practicing consciousness.
4. Spirit: Katarsis is recognition of the ability to reside in consciousness, or Truth/God/Love. It is acceptance of the authentic self, or soul, as co-creator of your life. Daily practice: meditation, practicing collective consciousness.
5. Soul: Katarsis is bringing yourself to the present moment and residing in the true self, residing in Love.
We will begin this week with committing our day to yoga by simply doing one pose in the morning and one at night. More on that tomorrow. Please join me as we connect to Truth living within us and everyone and everything around us.
The seven weeks are set up to add new habits beginning at the foundation seat of who we are as individuals and collectively to foster, you guessed it, Unity. Together we will move towards Liberated Unity, living a life that incorporates Truth from the trinity within us.
I will be posting every Tuesday for guidance, healing, and encouragement throughout the next seven weeks. Specifically a new aspect of Katarsis will be explored. If you would like one-on-one email support and consulting, please donate any amount by clicking the “Donate Now” button and I will respond with a Welcome Letter within 24 to 48-hours. And please feel free to email me with any questions or comments.
Looking forward to rebel evolving with you.
Xx
Jenny
Tummy Beliefs.
April 18, 2012 § Leave a Comment
Since attending an amazing workshop taught by my yoga instructor and friend, Jessica Jennings, on Ayurvedic eating and transfusing it into your lifestyle, my world has turned upside down. Or rather, loves that I have had deep down inside of me have begun to become more and more clear in the past six weeks because I’m getting my rudimentary health needs met.
It may sound silly and simple, however just having my stomach feeling great every day by eating an ayurvedic menu has given me a tremendous amount of room in self-discovery. By eating a grain, green veggies, and tastes that fulfill the six senses (of the tongue), I feel fuller, healthier, and more content.
Food has become for sustenance rather than a coping mechanism, joy, help, balance, distraction, or the like. I’ve been eating a light breakfast around eight. Lunch around eleven. And dinner around four. My stomach feels full and happy until I wake up the next day.
If you remember, health was one of my hopes for this year to get under control. I wanted to really, truly know what was wrong with my stomach and take care of it. Well, I finally faced the reality that I cannot–under any circumstance–eat wheat or gluten. That means when I make toast for Audrey in the morning, I have to wash my hands and the cutting board before I make a rice cake with sunflower seed butter for myself.
I have to proceed with caution and treat my stomach with the same level of respect that I do the health of my husband and my beautiful children. I would never give them food that would make them more unhealthy rather than healthier. That being said, we find that veganism is the best form of eating for our little family.
And with this happy tummy, I’ve been able to proceed towards allowing my mind to process about my childhood, parenting style, old beliefs, communication, and so on. Lots of good stuff. The day before my 28th birthday this year, I created a list that I now enjoy looking at on a daily basis. It is the summary of what I have based my life on. It is the same now as it has been as far back as I can remember, only now I’ve put it into words.
I believe in…
Building community
Exploring creativity
Nonviolent Communication
Processing issues
Growing naturally
Preserving relationships
Seeking wisdom
Discovering self-truth
World compassion
Serving over financial gain
Honoring others beliefs
I know, I know. Summarizing your beliefs into twelve “ideas” that mean different things to different people is kind of silly. But it’s really helped me. Helped me to see that regardless the backbone of my beliefs, I have a core that transcends multiple religions, ideals, and systems that have been around for thousands of years. And for that I am thankful.
Community Discussion: When you have your basic needs met, what do you believe in?
Do It Now.
March 14, 2012 § Leave a Comment
The biggest problem that consistently gets in my way and makes me feel like pulling my hair out is when I don’t follow my own simple little rule:
Do it now.
It’s really that easy. I put off the dishes until tomorrow because I don’t feel like putting what’s already dry away. I run out the door instead of getting Audrey’s toys back on the shelf. I tell myself that I’ll get the stuff in the car after I get the kids down for a nap.
All excuses I use on a weekly basis. All crap.
You see, every single one of us has a lot going on. We’ve got social lives, errands to run, chores around the house, families to support, and so on and so forth. We get it. We’ve all done it. We’ve all been there.
But before I break out any more cliché’s, let’s go back to the original point. Let’s do what we need to do when we need to do it. Yeah, it’s not always fun or convenient. Yet what is?
Perhaps the best thing to do here is to look at one’s perspective, motive, and decision making process when it comes to putting off the little that turn into the big eventually. I’m not arguing that you can do a blanket effect and thus discover the mystery of self-procrastination. I’m suggesting making it a weekly habit to practice. Maybe once or twice during a seven day period we can all get one more thing done in the moment. Not tomorrow or next week. But now. Today. We can do it now.
Community Discussion: What’s your favorite thing to put off? And what can you do to get it done?
Photo: Take time to do it now. Meditate like Audrey, “Om!”
The Busy Appearance.
March 7, 2012 § Leave a Comment
When I was a teenager, I was extremely active in numerous extracurricular activities. Over the four years of high school, I played volleyball, competed on the Speech and Debate team, wrote lyrics and composed music for piano, tried my hand at swing dancing, played on the Junior Varsity basketball team for the school, took tumbling classes, worked backstage on a play, played the piano, sang on a worship team at church (and was encouraged to take voice lessons by said worship team), acted in a mime group, and I’m sure there are even a few things I’m missing.
Throughout the week, I would go to tutoring lessons, Bible studies, and concerts featuring local bands like Noise Ratchet and Logos. The people around me thought I was popular. They thought that I always had something going on (perhaps I did). And they, in turn, kept there distance because of that busy appearance that I put off.
Now don’t get me wrong, I had a small handful of friends that I loved and appreciated. I just never learned how to make plans with people or it felt like I was never all that good at it. That’s what happens when no one ever teaches you how to. What I find interesting though is how popular, busy, and important people labeled me as. I didn’t feel like it. Quite the contrary, I felt the opposite. I felt lonely most days.
As I grew up, went to college, graduated, and attempted to find myself thereafter, I had to figure out the whole “friend thing” myself. I must admit, I’m still not fantastic at it. I love people, although I’m not as extroverted as I was way back when. I’ve toned down a lot and gather my energy when I’m by myself for sure.
During a conversation with a good friend a few weeks ago, I admitted that no one had visited that week and how glad I was that she was there. She was surprised when she heard this, and said,
“I thought you would be busy with friends all week, so I didn’t want to bug you!”
I can share Megan’s sentiment. I think we all do that in a sense. We make assumptions, good or bad, about those around us without really knowing the truth. We find that in ourselves we have fear, doubt, embarrassment, etc. that holds us back from connecting. It’s deception in its fullest form.
Why? Because in community we find ourselves. We receive compassion, love, empathy, acceptance, truth, friendship, and so on. In community our needs are met.
Realizing that I often do the same thing, tell myself that my friends are “busy” and I shouldn’t disturb, I decided to make it a point to continue to text/call/email/Facebook my friends throughout the week. Even if they’ve got stuff going on and don’t have time to catch up, it still feels amazing to hear from those around us. It fulfills the need of community.
Screw the deception of busy appearance and love those around you. It can’t hurt, can it?
Community Discussion: How are you going to put yourself out there (though it be vulnerable) to create community this week?
Photo: Joie (Megan’s daughter) and Audrey…good friends that enjoy connecting.
Financial Fantasy.
January 13, 2012 § Leave a Comment
This post is in no way, shape, or form meant to be a downer. It’s intention is to cause you to think and view your financial situation differently. Some of you will stop reading there, because it’s just plain not that fun. Others of you will continue to read because you’re curious and by golly, you’d like to get out of this mess.
For the past few years, Trever and I have been living in what we like to call a Financial Fantasy. A future fantasy, to be more specific. We’ve spent more of our time, energy and money hoping and wishing for some nonexistent financial wealth and stability that isn’t there.
In so doing, we’ve spent above our means on numerous occasions. Lived like we made more than we actually did. And gotten into trouble more than once. On top of that, we haven’t saved a single cent because of it.
Here’s what I mean: We’ve been hopeful on a continual basis that a few of the following situations would occur:
1. Trev would land a big part on a TV show or get a movie
2. I would get a freelance gig that was consistent and well-paying
3. Trev would get a carpentry job that payed our bills, while allowing us to save and for him to continue auditioning
4. That some of our debt from the Airstream or my student loans would vanish
So not every situation is completely far-fetched, but let’s face it–none of them are reality. The reality is up till August 2011, we were living on a Fantasy Budget without the means to even pay our fixed bills and buy food and gas. We cut that down and we’ve been much better ever since. Not perfect, but better.
Could any of the above scenarios occur? Sure. But until then, we need to go back to the drawing board and live within our means. Our current means. Not means that might someday exist, causing us to be fruitful, pay down our debt, and save.
What does this mean for you? Well, for one thing: look at your income and compare them to your expenses. I’m not talking about how much you make versus your bills, I mean that summary at the top of your bank statement that says “Income” and “Expenses” or the like. Is your income constantly higher than expenses? Are you socking money away in a three to six month emergency savings account? Are you using–and completely paying off–any consumer debt? If you answered “no” to any of those questions, you’re living in a Financial Fantasy.
Secondly, categorize and write down the average expenses over the last few months using the said bank statements. When Trever and I did this, our eyes were opened to the hundreds of dollars we were spending on frivolous items, ATM withdrawals, and eating out. The paper doesn’t lie. And if it does, you should be calling your bank. We discovered an average of over $500 unnecessary expenditures in each of the 3 months we looked at. If you’re spending over the necessities (rent, utilities, debt, health insurance, life insurance, car insurance, cellphones, food, gas) without having the means, you’re living in a Financial Fantasy.
Lastly, it’s time to get in reality. Reality is looking at your actual income and comparing it to the necessary expenses. If they don’t match up, you need to cut them down in one way or another. For some, this might mean finding cheaper insurance and not eating out. For others, the decision may be as difficult as selling your home or using a strategic foreclosure–a little something we learned from Tom Hanks in Larry Crowne–to get out from under home debt and property taxes. We know, none of it is easy. But living in reality is pure bliss when compared to pretending your life is something it isn’t.
If this isn’t you at all and you’re just that awesome, perhaps it’s time to start thinking about: paying off your debt faster, saving more, and giving more through philanthropy. If you need help because budgeting and financial reality aren’t your strong suite, email me. I’m always here to help. And this is an extremely exciting reality to help you with.
Community Discussion: Have you been living in Financial Fantasy?
Clearing Out.
January 11, 2012 § Leave a Comment
There’s nothing like doing a bit of clean up at the beginning of the year. It feels so good to start afresh and have a clean slate to work from. Trever and I took that to a complete extreme for 2012 by moving to a new lovely bungalow that suits us and our needs better than our last home.
This new space has given me the opportunity to do some decluttering and organizing. Okay, so it’s a bit of nesting thrown in there as the arrival of our second bundle approaches. And, man, does it feel good! Don’t worry though, I won’t keep all my secrets to myself. Here’s what I do to start anew:
• Start with the inside: I begin with a mental inventory and do a bit of an overhaul on unnecessary baggage I’ve been keeping. I once had a counselor tell me to keep a running list of twenty things that I’d like to work on. But you know me, I like 5! So I keep a smaller number as to not get overburdened mentally. To be honest, there’s just one thing that I’d like to do away with. When I figure it out, I’ll let you know.
• Clean up my act: Obviously, with other people in the house comes other stuff. This used to bother me and I’d constantly ask Trev to get rid of things I hadn’t seen him use in forever. I let this go for the most part and now I focus on me; I get rid of any clothing, shoes, accessories, and other stuff that’s just collecting dust one room at a time. And I let him have his space.
• Do a digital purge: This includes my inbox, email to-do’s, computer cleansing–yes, even computers need a detox–and making sure my iPhone is up-to-date and contacts are saved and in order. It’s crazy how having digital clutter can really mess up your daily flow.
• Take inventory: When you have stuff, even in a small one bedroom, you can forget what you have. Sometimes I just go through the items we have in the bathroom or closet just to remind myself what’s there. “Oh! Another bar of soap!” When this happens, I pull it out and use it.
• Clear your life: If you spent way too much time doing stuff you didn’t want to do last year and not enough time figuring out what you really wanted to do, doing it, and enjoying yourself, I say let’s start in 2012! This year I will keep a fairly simple schedule, say “yes” to things I actually want to do, and not over-clutter my day to day.
Community Discussion: So that’s it for me. How will you be Clearing Out the dust of 2011?
Photo: Soft and cuddly for the new year.
Focus on Five.
December 30, 2011 § 1 Comment
If you’ve got too much going on, constantly feel busy, or like life is passing you by…perhaps it is, but it doesn’t have to be that way. No one ever said you had to be “this” productive or get “that” much done. Granted, there definitely is a western mentality that behooves you to do as much as absolutely possible. Yet maybe there’s a better way to live.
A more relaxing, enjoyable, enticing, beautiful, zen way to live. A way that is healthier for your mind, spirit, emotions, and health. Or more so, you as a whole. And it’s not as hard as you may think.
By following a simple rule, you’ll slim down your load of obligations by properly prioritizing what’s really important to you. Sound impossible? It doesn’t have to be. It does, however, cause you to really figure out what your life is about. Rather than filling it with this, that, and the other thing, how about slimming it down to 5?
Focus on 5 can be cross-applied to every aspect of your life. That’s what I love about the simplicity of it. You can have five work goals, five relationship goals, five spiritual, physical, mental, or chores-for-the-day goals. Whatever you want to call um, you can just make it five.
No one ever said you had to do more than that. No one even said you had to do five. But let’s just fantasize what those five would be if you could just do that.
In my life personally, I have five focuses at a time and I don’t add more to my plate unless something is taken away. At the moment, those 5 are: Family, Relationships, JennyLvoe.com, Creative Consulting, and Prepping for Baby. When Baby arrives, I’ll replace the focus on something else, while Baby will then fall into the “Family” category. Maybe go back to learning about website development, learn a language, or something else entirely!
The other area that I consistently use this philosophy in is in my daily chore life. I only allow myself to write down five to-do’s. I’ve found that I’ve never had to do more than five a day as long as I complete all five that are on the list.
I also make sure things don’t get on the list that don’t need to be. For instance, when someone emails/calls/texts me, I reply. When I go to the store to get something and bring it home, I organize it and put it away immediately. I pick up things, dust, vacuum, sweep, etc. as messes are made and needed cleaning, rather than letting it pile up and having to add it to my list of five. This technique works about 90% of the time. When it doesn’t work, I’m being lazy or I’m sick. And pretty soon it’ll be because I’m trying to figure out how to raise two people, instead of just one. Ha!
And of course, this works in your professional life. You never want to spread yourself too thin by wearing too many hats. You benefit others the most by knowing what you love and accomplishing what your strengths are. Whether you’re an entrepreneur or you work for someone else, it’s important to know what you’re good at and what others expect of you. Sticking to five main work obligations and five tasks a day will keep work from becoming too overwhelming.
If you’re feeling like you can relate to any of the above, perhaps it’s time for a good purging. Our minds can become too cluttered with stuff and our material stuff can overburden our souls. Start with your mind clutter and write down what’s taking up too much space. Let it go and only stick to five tasks a day. Then move on to your possessions; declutter and reorganize. These steps will help you feel like a new person. Focus on five. You can do this! It’s a New Year and there’s always space for a new, slimmer you!
Happy New Year!
Xx
Jenn
Community Discussion: When you day dream about just “five”, how does it make you feel? Are you up for the challenge? What would your five be?
Food vs. Food Product.
December 16, 2011 § Leave a Comment
I’m gonna be quite frank with you and let you in on a little secret. During this past year of diet/food changing habits, I’ve never really thought about why the food that I was putting into my body was so much better for me than what I was doing before. At the very strong chance of sounding dumb, I never thought it was so simple:
Food vs. food product.
Why hadn’t I thought of this before? It really comes down to how many food items I’m putting into my body daily, weekly, monthly that come, not only in a package, but with an ingredients list. Versus those that don’t.
When I became conscious of this fact a few weeks ago, my buying habits changed once again. Instead of buying veggie broth or pesto in a jar or hummus ready made, I began rethinking what I was buying and asked myself,
• How easy would it be to take this from a food product to a food?
• Would it be cost effective?
• Can I make it time-efficiently?
• Is there an alternative that is a food or foods rather than this food product?
• If none of the above, do I really need it?
When I started becoming more aware of the ingredients list, I made different choices of what I purchased and put inside of me. Not only did I begin to buy fewer food products when I asked myself this series of questions, but I decided to cut out some foods altogether and make my own from scratch–like homemade crackers! Mmmm!
It’s not an easy choice to make. I must admit, there’s a mentality that goes along with food products that come in boxes, jars, cartons, and so on. They’re marketed as “easy”; as something that will make cooking a breeze. I’ve had to break that perspective and say to myself, “Homemade is not more difficult than a box. It’s a lifestyle shift. And a good one at that.”
I want the food that I put into my body to allow me to live longer. And happier. I want to feel confident that I’m giving my family foods that will give them health when they are feeling sick, depressed, tired, or stressed. And that’s what food is to me.
Try it this week. Take 3 food products on your list and find recipes to turn them into foods. Ask yourself the above questions and start feeling better about what you’re putting inside of your beautiful body. Food vs. food product: it’s as simple as that.
Cut Your Overhead.
December 14, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Before you venture out into your creative biz, it’s important to write down the costs. Be cautious not to get too deep into overhead that you make it more difficult on yourself to break-even each month (I say to myself). If you’ve already begun the process of owning a small business and you don’t have a list of your monthly budget and/or an income statement, today is the best day to start. If you’re struggling with getting your company off the ground or wanting to actually make a profit, there’s one key factor that will help in every way:
Cut your overhead.
Overhead is the stuff that dreams are made of. Okay, not really. It’s more like the background. But it makes the reverie run smoothly and look realistic. It’s the gas and electric, rent, office supplies, Internet, marketing and advertising, and so on. Your business–and life, for that matter–can’t run without it.
Taking a good, hard look at your overhead and where those finances are going on a monthly basis will bring you to reality, however difficult. As simple as it is, doing a little something here and there can save you $10, $50, or even two hundred dollars month. It can be the difference between making it or having to give up/postpone your creative love.
So what can you do to cut your overhead? Think outside the box!
• Learn about electricity saving tips by doing some online research and apply um
• Save on rent by living in a smaller space or sharing an office with a fellow creative or even work from a coffee shop or friends for free
• Reuse printing paper when you can and cut down on mailings by using email
• Lower your Internet from your office space and only use it for communication/social networking; save the videos etc. for home Internet
• Apply one of the thousands of free marketing and advertising techniques that are available or do trade (I love this stuff, so email me if you need some ideas)
We’ve only hit the very tippety tip top of the ice burg. I could go on for hours and a hundred more bullet points. It just takes brainstorming. Trever and I have also found that it can take testing out a bit to discover where cutting your overhead is comfortable. There are some things we can’t believe we spent so much money on month after month and year after year and others where we attempt to sacrifice only to soon discover their extreme importance.
Every one of us is different. I believe in you and I know you’ll figure out how to monetarily benefit from your creativity.
Community Discussion: How will you cut your overhead in the new year?
Photo: Audrey’s technique? Stealing public water.
Buy Free.
November 24, 2011 § 6 Comments
So now that Christmas season is in full swing, here’s the big question: Could you go an entire month without buying anything for yourself?
I know, I know. Most difficult task ever. I have a tendency to desire to want to fulfill most of my needs/wants before Xmas–new undies, a shower cap, a mortar and pestle–just so I know they’ve been fulfilled and I don’t have to rely on anyone.
Let’s be honest, the time of giving always ends up to be too much giving. By the end of it, you have an overflow of stuff you do and don’t need–DVDs, chapstick, socks, and candy you will probably never eat.
I’m weird in the sense that I want to get necessities for the holidays–or edible treats or homemade gifts–yet I really detest junk that I know I’m going to get rid of or re-gift. My sister, Liz, knows my so well that she asks when she gives me something:
“Will you keep it or are you going to get rid of it in a few months?”
Hey, at least she’s honest. And she’s right. (Rest assured, Liz, you’re a phenomenal gift-giver and I very rarely get rid of, take back, or re-gift your lovely treasures.) Knowing that about myself, I started the need/want fulfillment a few years back.
This year, I’m not gonna give in. I’m going to go on a 30-day personal shopping strike.
I’m not going to purchase clothes, shoes, accessories, books, odds and ends, tea, or anything else for myself for the entire month. I’m going to let myself give in to the fantasy and surprise of Christmas. And focus my energies on making other people’s holiday magical, fulfilling, and community-oriented.
Here’s my challenge to you: instead of buying more for yourself this month, take some time to purchase or make thoughtful, community-evoking prezzies. Spend what you would budget on your needs/wants on others. It sounds simple, I know.
Even with the best intentions we can go, “Oh a new warm sweater would be nice!” I always seem to do that and then get the same thing as a gift.
So instead of going out today to “get the best deals,” how about staying in and pondering what would help your relationships grow this season.
Whatever you do, enjoy your holidays. They always go by so fast.
Community Discussion: Are you up for the 30-Day challenge? Will you be going shopping today?
Photo: Does buying cute shoes for Audrey count? Hehe.
