The Good Times

"Write your Sad times in sand. Write your Good times in stone." George Bernard Shaw.  I find that so many people tend to write their sad times in stone.  Now, don't get me wrong here, this is after all what keeps me in the business of healing....helping people to find a way to let go of the sad times and establish  better connections to the good times is all a part of healing.  But sometimes people allow themselves to become entrenched in the negative and forget to embrace the positives in the moment!

So I would like to invite all of you to take a sad moment, write about it in the sand...this can be on the beach or in a bowl of sand....and then leave it there.  Notice over the next few days what it does.  I have found that as the writing fades, and it will fade, so do the emotional hot buttons around the issue.  Try it...it actually works!

Blessed Be

Trent

http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn

www.deerhornshamanic.com

Natural Spell Casting

Not every spell requires a flaming cauldron. Spell casting can be as natural and simple as deciding what to think about things and choosing how to look at the world around us. Let's face it, if we get all caught up in how bad the world is, then this is the type of world we are creating. If we choose to apply positive energies to the world around us, the world becomes more positive. It all begins with the self aligning with the Self.

We have been lied to in our world. We have been told that we are not Divine, sovereign beings. We have been told that we are lowly sinners who need to suffer for our sins. We have been told that magic does not exist. We have been told that there is illusion and there is delusion and nothing else when it comes to magic. We have been told that we can only use 5% of our brain capacity and that the other 95% is a mass of Jello-like matter that just oozes out when we have a severe head injury. These are all lies. Most people don't even recognize them as lies because these thought systems have become a part of our common reality. After all, imagine how threatening it would be for the powers in our world if we all, en mass, decided to embrace our sovereignty and discard their man-made rules!

Natural spell casting actually lets go of all of these man-made rules and says, "Now here is how it is. I am at One with the Divine and I get to decide what is right for me without fear of judgement or condemnation. And what I am now declaring for myself is_________________ ." (fill in the blank.) Then with the new found freedom we begin exercising the other 95% of our brain capacity and start the process of manifestation from the other realms into this realm. It is actually quite easy and it works rather well. For example, for those who are having financial challenges, try offering flax seed into a small bowl with a prayer of gratitude each day for the many blessings that have been bestowed upon you. Declare that you are now open to receive the abundant financial flow of the Universe with gratitude and respect. As the bowl fills up, so your financial flow will increase. Things will come easier and more smoothly for you because you are now open to that possibility, guilt free! When the bowl is full, take it out into nature and scatter it to the earth, thanking the Earth for the abundance that sustains our lives on it's sacred body. Then begin to make offerings into the bowl on a daily basis once again and the cycle continues. Try it. It works.

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Nooks and Crannies

I like placing things in odd places. This crystal geode is in a crevice between the trunk of our apple tree and a large branch. Just below it is a hollowed out hole where a branch used to be. I think that hole goes right through the tree to the base because there are birds who have nested in the branch, but who enter the hole of the branch and sometimes exit the hole in the trunk. I find that to be fascinating. I like the fact that little beings can live inside of my apple tree. Somehow it gives me warm fuzzies. I also like the fact that at the base of the tree you can see right through it to the other side. Now, I don't know what this all means in terms of the physical health of the tree. I am simply enjoying the process of discovery.

Isn't that what nooks and crannies are for? The process of discovery leads to all sorts of light bulbs going off in one's head and can also lead to the invention of many other things. For example, in the hollowed out branch I used to have another geode placed, shining outward into the yard. Once I discovered that the birds were interested in the branch as a nesting place, I simply made room for them by removing that geode and placing it elsewhere. I have also discovered in this process that the birds were appreciative because, even when mowing lawn or weeding the garden around that tree they leave me alone despite the fact that they have young ones in there. They trust I won't disturb them. This beats the dive bombing that most folks experience when too close to a nest. So I have discovered that the birds appreciate simple acts of kindness and have created between us a level of trust. That totally rocks!

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Water Karma

This is a wee scene from the Yorkton area in southeastern Saskatchewan. It is the result of last week's storm that brought torrential rains and flooding to the downtown area. My water seepage seems so minimal in comparison. There are local businesses that are destroyed and homes that are totalled. Insurance companies are only covering part of what has been done because the flooding is considered to be an "Act of God". Insurance companies bug me. What the heck do we pay premiums for if we aren't going to be assisted when the unforeseen occurs??!!

I always wanted to have a car that was like an amphibian and could be driven in water as well as on land. Perhaps this would be a good thing to invest in now? Mind you, I don't think that I would want it to be like a submarine. I would not want to be underwater completely and see what all is floating around in that water with me. Yikes! Perhaps I will focus more on the boat/car/plane type of vehicle. Or perhaps moving to another planet is in order? It seems that no matter where you go something is happening with the weather. It makes one wonder what is around the corner for us and are we that messed up on this planet that the weather is so radically affected? These are just things to think about.

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Stepping Stones

I find that it is important in my life to recognize what things and situations and relationships are solid and will be consistent through my life, and which ones are stepping stones. Some have thought that I have difficulty with commitment, but it is quite the contrary. I have no problem committing to things and situations and even people that I think are going to be around. The others, well, I treat those areas as transitory, a stepping stone in life's journey.

So how do I know what is solid and what is not? Sometimes it is a matter of guess work. Sometimes it is a matter of instinct (which I have certainly learned to trust), and sometimes it is a matter of patterns. Patterns you say? Yes, patterns. You see, I watch patterns in situations and circumstances and patterns of behaviour. When I see a pattern that is consistently non-committal or wishy washy, or even a pattern of disloyalty, smoke screening and betrayal, I step aside and do not commit to that. Sometimes things change. People are, after all, able to grow. But that sort of thing requires conscious connection and decision making on their part. Let's face it, every situation and circumstance will turn out of the quality of the people involved. So when I back away it is because I notice something that is not authentic. When I get closer, it is because I see that something is worth the investment. This is not a judgement. It is a discernment.

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Drip Drip Drip

I love fountains. They make me feel relaxed and receptive and completely Zen in my mind and in my heart. So when I found this gem tucked into the corner of a Zen Garden, I just had to stand there for a moment and admire it. That was before we ended up with so much water and cleanup from our torrential rains that I got really sick of water in general.

Today we have had a sump hole and sump pump installed into our basement. This should help tremendously for keeping the water levels in our basement at a minimum. I am looking forward to having a dry path through my counseling room again. The carpet will definitely need to be replaced, but now I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. It is not a train. It is actually a light. I can see it, right there, shining brightly and offering hope. Ahhhh. Yes....the Light!

Have you ever noticed how things sometimes go in threes? This time it was rain, then flooding, then renovations. I think I can handle this. I have all the confidence in the world that I am going to see the end and that I will, as a result, have an even more beautiful environment in which to work and live.

Blessed Be

Trent

http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn

www.deerhornshamanic.com

Stay on Your Path

It amazes me sometimes how often people allow themselves to get diverted from their intended path. We all think of our path of purpose and whether or not we are on it. Sometimes I think it is important to recognize the circumstances that are there as a test to our commitment to our paths. We will always find that there are pebbles and even rocks and boulders on the path. The question is whether we let these things stop us and divert us completely, or do we allow ourselves to stay committed even if a very slight detour is in order?

I did not always want to be a shaman. It is an all encompassing occupation at times. Sometimes it wears you out and sometimes it makes you high. For a few years I knew that I was becoming a shaman, but I also had a lot of fear about what that meant and what it would look like. I even tried to run away from shamanism only to find that it is in my DNA and I can't run or hide from it at all. Then the question was what I was going to do with it? I always knew that I was brought to this earth to help people. I figured when I was very young that this meant that I would become a doctor or a police officer. Then I realized that I did not fit into either of those modalities. Then I thought that I was going to become a minister. That lasted only as long as it took for me to ask important questions about the church and discover that there were not a lot of receptive people in the church and many of them thought that a shaman was a devil worshipper, even before they knew that this is what I had been trained in. So off I went to finish up a degree in English (thus not wasting any of my educational time) and move right along into allowing myself to gradually come out of the shamanic closet.

There have been many challenges since then and frankly sometimes I have wondered if Spirit really wants me to continue? As I have sorted things out in that regard I have noticed that whenever I have felt alone is the time that Spirit has been carrying and holding me. So each time I have become more committed to staying on my path. I hope that each of you will do the same. Stay on your paths. Don't get discouraged when things get a little rough. Just know in your heart what is the right thing to do.

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Bridge Over Troubled Water

Well, it rained.....again. My area of the world has had record rainfall for the last few weeks. Our basement is seeping water into the laundry room (which is not that inconvenient)and into the Counselling Room (which is highly inconvenient for me and my clients). It reminded me of this little setting in a Zen Garden at the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon. I thought to myself how nice it would be if the bridges could all have the option of going over rock and stone instead of water. I think I might have to build a bridge from my back patio to my garage! Then if we could just attach some pontoons to the car....

Really, I think that if everyone just focuses on welcoming the Sun every morning, noon, and evening we might, with our thoughts, be able to turn this flooding thing around! My invitation.....TRY IT, PEOPLE! TRY IT! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, TRY IT! Glug, blub, blub.....

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com