Tag: gratitude

Why Have a Ritual

I’m continuing February Love with Ritual – I love my morning ritual, it’s my totally alone time with the Universe.  It doesn’t take me long and it makes all the difference in the world for how the rest of my day unfolds and feels.  I carry with me the peace and blessings of this sacred energy for the rest of the day.

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Here is where I stand and open to the mystery.

Here is where I am open, present, ready and willing to receive the gifts of our Holy Mother of Miracles Manifest.

Here is where I honor and give gratitude to all my angels, my spirit guides, my physical mother and father, my ancestors, my animal spirit guides and all of the celestial beings who are with me supporting me, protecting me, loving me and blessing me with their wisdom.

Here’s where I open myself up to letting the wonder and magic come in.

Here is where I declare every day that I expect miracles today.

Here is where I remind myself to step into my power.

Here is where I am in union with and consciously open my heart to Holy Mother.

Here is where I shine love, healing and blessings out into the world.

Rose.jpegI start by lighting candles and incense and smudging myself and my space to remove and release all negative energies, all fear, and all thoughts that limit me.

I say my prayers

I bless everyone, myself and the Universe

I say my mantra 108 times while holding my mala beads

I say my affirmations

I give thanks

Here is where I declare to bring forth  –

My highest light

My highest love

My highest visions

My highest service

My highest gratitude

My highest gifts

My highest health…

Enveloped in this love the tone is set for the day for me.

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And when I’m done I write at least three pages in my journal, a practice I started after reading Julia Cameron’s, The Artist’s Way.

Rituals fascinate me, I started my practice only a few years ago it’s not something I grew up with.  My parents were holocaust survivors, after the war they didn’t believe in God.  There was no religion in my home and God was something to fear.    My ritual which is always evolving has totally changed my life.  It’s become such a sacred time for me that I’m jealous and protective of it, actually I get annoyed when I have an early morning appointment and I don’t have the time to savor the deliciousness of it.

Rituals hold power , magic and miracles within themselves.

I invite you and encourage you to create a ritual if you don’t already have one.  It doesn’t have to be a long drawn out thing, it can be as little as five minutes.  And it can be anything that brings you comfort and peace.

Sit quietly and tune into your body for 5 minutes.

List 5 things in a gratitude journal that you’re grateful for.

Stare into space sipping your coffe for 5 minutes.

Dance joyfully for 5 minutes in your home.

The list in endless. Do what feels good for you. You don’t have to have a morning ritual it can be at anytime, it can be out in nature, doesn’t matter.  You don’t have to spend a lot of time, money or effort.  It should be organic and come from your heart.  If you can manage more time that’s great and if not 5 minutes is all you need to create a shift in your life and find the magic that is waiting for you.

Create a ritual for yourself that will empower you, fill you with joy, peace and wonder.  And very important – have fun with it.

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What is your ritual?  Is it in the morning/evening?  What’s one thing that you do that centers you, lights you up?  Do you want to start one?  Come share in the comments below.

With Blessings and Gratitude

COPYRIGHT MASHA G. ELLMAN 2017

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Give Yourself a Brake

“You don’t always need a plan.  Sometimes you just need to breath, trust, let go and see what happens.” ~ Mandy Hale

I started out knowing exactly what I wanted to write for this week of February Love last week it was Spend Time With Your Dreams and this week it was going to be – clearing space. Yes, that’s what I planned, (so I thought) I even had a rough draft ready but as the days slipped out from under me it just wasn’t happening.  I couldn’t get myself to read what I wrote, I didn’t feel it, I didn’t know how to write it, I kept on procrastinating every day and I couldn’t approach it, it was stuck inside me and I couldn’t get to it.  It was feeling more like a burden than a joy, and I started to tell myself all the negative stuff that doesn’t serve me.  Everyday that passed I got more frustrated and stressed at not being able to write it.

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In all of this I forgot to have some self compassion for myself and give myself a break.  Instead of stressing over this, beating myself up and berating myself, I needed to remember that every day cannot be the same, and sometimes the plans that we have so carefully and thoughtfully laid out, are just not meant to be, they are not happening.

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” ~ Buddha

I forget that there’s a Universal Force that is greater than me and always knows what is best for me and for all.  Opening to this Universal Force is not always clear to me, I stumble and resist until I realize wait a minute, let me let go and let the Universe do it. Maybe writing about clearing space was not meant for now, someday but not now.

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So last night I went to sleep trusting that the Universe will give me the perfect words.  This morning I opened myself up to allowing what wants to be written to come through, and here I am writing about letting go, allowing Spirit to shine through.  I’m reminding me and you about – compassion for yourself, giving yourself a break, letting go, know that you’re always supported by a loving force and allow the magic to happen.

The love for this week…

Give yourself some self compassion – give yourself a brake – instead of beating yourself up over not being able to do what you had planned – get out of the way and allow what wants to come through.  Be conscious of the Universal Force that knows what is best and let it shine through you.

And I have to say that this feels really good and perfect as I am writing it.

What about you?  Are you giving yourself a brake?  What do you do to give yourself self compassion.  Are you letting Spirit shine through you?  Leave a comment and let us know, love to hear from you.

Sending you lots of love and blessings

COPYRIGHT MASHA G. ELLMAN 2017

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Spend Time with Your Dreams

So I’m following my theme for this month, February Love, a month of paying special attention to loving ME, and for this week I’m setting aside time to spend with my dreams.

Focus in on them – allow them to breath – make them larger – give them space – bring them to the forefront in my imagination.

“Every great dream begins with a dreamer.  Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”               ~ Harriet Tubman

Your dreams live inside your imagination and your imagination is fueled by your thoughts.

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Spend some time with your dreams.

Bring them into the light.

Open them up.

Look at them.

Expand them.

Take a step towards them.

What are your dreams?  Have you re-visited them lately?  Have you paid attention to them and focused in on them?  Have you brought them into the light?  What are your thoughts about your dreams?  Do they bring up fear or joy?  –

Remember you are the dreamer and your dreams will not happen without you.

Have a question, a comment, a suggestion?  Come and share, love to hear from you.

Blessings

COPYRIGHT MASHA G. ELLMAN 2017

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February Love

I’ve decided February to be the month of – I LOVE ME.  That is, the month of paying special attention to loving ME.

I’m letting go of criticism, judgement and any other toxic thoughts I have about myself and inviting in only those that uplift, encourage and light me up.

I’m tuning into myself and giving me an extra sprinkling of special sparkly love.

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Let this month be the month you walk in your own power, knowing that you deserve – deserve to be happy – deserve to be prosperous – deserve to be loved – deserve to be brilliant.

Don’t leave yourself at the end of the line, don’t let yourself be guided by someone else’s opinions of you – make yourself a priority, remember that you are – important – unique – beautiful – special…

Take time to pay attention to your home, this is your castle – decorate it with beauty and love. Buy flowers, they don’t have to be expensive I buy them for under $10 at the supermarket.  Burn candles, they add a warmth to your home.

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Burn delicious incense, my favorite scent is the Mag Champa, Agarbatti, you can get them at Amazon, some of the health food stores, or metaphysical stores. (Remember to follow the instructions for lighting candles and incense, don’t leave them unattended)

This month splurge on one special gift for yourself. Something that you’ve been wanting but haven’t bought for yourself. A book maybe that’s been on your wish list. A new beautiful journal.  A delicious cup of tea with a friend…

Give yourself five minutes a day of undisturbed time.  Turn off your cell phone, computer, ipad and any other electronic devise that can disturb you and just envelop yourself in the silence and quiet of just being with you.

Take from this what feels good to you, leave out the rest and I invite you to leave a comment, lets share our special love.

Wishing you February Love Blessings

COPYRIGHT MASHA G. ELLMAN 2017

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Weekly Magic

“Embrace the glorious mess that you are.” ~Elizabeth Gilbert

 Make this week a sweet embrace week.

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Stay fully present in each moment.  Appreciate.  Be grateful.

Be mindful of the food you put into your body, honor and love it.  This is the house of your soul.  Get a massage.  Exercise.  Take a selfie 🙂

Give generously and receive generously.

There is so much you can do and it doesn’t have to take up hours.  Write for 5 minutes in a journal.  Meditate for a few minutes.  Light a candle.  Listen to an inspiring podcast while preparing dinner.  Let your mind sweep you away into fantasy land.  Rest…

Take one small step and start that project you’ve been putting off, small steps yield big results.

Give yourself a treat from the world and spend a few minutes a day in an embrace with you.

Feel free to share your gift of embrace to yourself.  Post a comment, a picture, a poem.  Feel free to embrace.

Picture above taken at the new Downtown Summerlin mall, Las Vegas, NV. 2016

Copyright Masha G. Ellman 2017

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I Remember…Never Again

Today I stand with my brothers and sisters all around the world to commemorate the memory of the victims of the Holocaust, a day remembered around the world. It was today January 27, 1945 that the Soviet troops first entered the death camp Aucshwitz-Birkenau in Poland January 27, 1945; they were the first to enter the camps.

Both my mother and father were holocaust survivors, each the only survivor out of their entire families. In 1940 in one minute in time their entire life as they knew it was turned upside down and changed forever.   Everyone and everything they loved was ripped out of their heart and they were thrown into places where hell itself would have been paradise instead.

They survived five years of starvation, torture, degradation. They lived in fear of being chosen to be killed, or to be taken and used for experiments, every single second of every single day for five years.   They saw with their own eyes the horrors for which I have no words to describe.

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My mother spoke about her life, the horrors that she endured that others endured every single day from the time I was born till the day she passed away. The only thing I know about my father is what my mother told me, he never talked about it, his pain did not leave his heart and he passed away when I was 13 years old.

As a child I didn’t understand the words but I felt her pain, the tears that ran down her face, her words those were the fairytails I grew up with.

She was the most courageous woman I have ever known.  She was sentenced to be killed three different times, and each time she escape her death sentence by some miraculous way. I don’t know from where she mustered up the strength to live when each second for five long years seemed like an eternity.

My parents biggest dream was to live in peace, to come to America where their children could have a better life. My father never saw that dream come true.   My mother sacrificed everything she had to make this a reality for my brother and me. When we came to America was the first time I saw my mother smile really smile and laugh and sing. She was the most generous woman I know, always giving of herself and she always loved me unconditionally even through the years that I didn’t understand.

Today I light a candle in remembrance of all the more than 6 million Jews and the non Jews who were killed at the hands of the Nazis. I honor their memory.

I remember.

Copyright Masha G. Ellman 2017

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