Abraham: A Hurricane of Grace

One of the first photos taken with the camera I got for my birthday. I played with it a little in Photoshop and was totally in the Vortex while I worked on it.

Sometimes you start out a Saturday pretty darned well by going out to breakfast with your beloved partner and his brother who's visiting from out-of-state. And then you've got to get home and get ready for your very favorite monthly event: the local Law of Attraction meetup and you do that. And on the drive over you start imagining how much fun it's going to be and you find yourself right there in the Vortex. And then you have a really nice meeting and you get to chat with folks afterward and that's really fun, too. And you've taken some of the flyers for the meeting with the intention of putting one up wherever you can. And you take a route home that you can't even remember right now and you drive by a sign that proclaims:

"PLANT SALE"

and you think, hey, maybe they'll have some hellebores that you forgot to look for the day before in the bigger city to the north. And you've been looking for these hellebores, these old-fashioned plants AKA Lenten roses, and you haven't been able to locate them, but you've got the article about them in your purse so that you'll know the names of the ones you're looking for, but you'll take anything you can get at this point because you've just got to have some; you're craving some because your front garden beds are pretty shady and a little bare and need some more blooming things ALWAYS! And you drive past the sign thinking, oh, they probably don't have any hellebores, no one has any right now, but then you see the LOA flyers printed on pink and green polka-dot bordered paper, and suddenly your car is turning left to find the place where the sale is.

And you pull into the very full parking lot and you get out of your car and you grab a flyer just in case there's somewhere to hang it and you start walking to what looks like a tiny little plant sale because all you can see from a distance is one stand with some plants on it. But as you get closer and you see what's actually there, your heart lifts a little because there are actually a couple of stands and some tables and there are plants everywhere. And the sale is wrapping up but still a lady or two is there to help you and you say you're looking for hellebores and they lead you to six little plants taken from one man's yard and you ask about colors and he says what he dug up were plants whose parents sported white blossoms and red but who knows what the bees did and so you buy three and they cost you only one dollar each. And you let the lady know you're looking for shade tolerant plants and she sees some things and so do you and everything is one or two or three dollars and these are big plants that would set you back six or seven dollars in most stores. And you even find a hebe and an elderberry (BEAUTIFUL plants) in 5-gallon pots that would easily cost you twenty dollars or more anywhere and they're only five dollars!!! And you're freaking out because you've got such beautiful plants and now you're surrounded by garden club members and they're all smiling because you're so happy and one of them says, I think we need this lady to join our club! And they slip an invitation in with your pots. And you spend a measly twenty-three dollars and your car is full and you see your LOA flyer is there amongst your plants as you pay for them and you think:

ASK AND IT IS GIVEN

THIS SH*T WORKS!!

And then you get home and your sweet partner is napping on the living room couch and you put on a nice warm sweatshirt and settle down with your lovely laptop and for no apparent reason decide to look at Facebook even though you think you don't like it all that much and you see all your Abraham friends and one of them has this  video:

http://tinyurl.com/BonJoviBabyRocker

And you remember how funny your son was at that age and how wonderful he is these days and how much you love him.

And another Facebook friend has this Abraham/music mashup and you decide to give it a listen:

http://tinyurl.com/HurricaneOfGrace

And you listen to it again. And again. And then you get so inspired you decide to blog. And you think you're just going to put the links on your blog and then let people know you blogged, but then you think about what a freakin' stellar day it's turned out to be that you just start writing, just because....

YOU'RE IN THE VORTEX AND YOU FEEL SO GOOD YOU JUST WANT TO SHARE IT!!!!

And now your Vortex includes a blogpost and wow!!!! 

Abraham: OMG It Just Gets Better and Better in the Vortex!

This is one of the little scenes that I had on my kitchen window sill that I looked at for years as I watched dishes and imagined my new and in the Vortex kitchen.

Who knew how good things could get and how quickly?!? All this practicing milking being in the Vortex once I'm swept in has been wonderful. The other end of that stick (that I've been hearing so much about on YouTube clips recently) is that once you're used to being in the Vortex a lot, being OOV* is really, really miserable. I won't go into the particulars, but on more than one occasion in the past couple of months, I've felt worse than I've felt in YEARS!!!!! What's wonderful about that, I've figured out, is that this is FABULOUS NEWS. Here's the deal:


When you're used to feeling ornery, resentful, sad about the plight of the world, worried about the past/future, fretful, annoyed, hateful toward other people or entities (corporations, government, politicians, the rich), irritated about traffic, you name it (and I've done it all, believe me), you don't notice being out of the Vortex because you don't get in there that much. You might notice being in the Vortex (but not usually cuz you're probably not in there that long), but you've become accustomed to feeling not that good. When you get into the Vortex with deliberate thinking, or when you're swept in and you know you're in the Vortex and you practice staying in there by milking the experience, you really start enjoying feeling good and you hunger for it when you feel just okay or when you're just outside the Vortex. But when you're out of vibrational range of the Vortex and you can't even remember how you got so way out, it is NOT FUN. It's true when Abraham says that you can't go back. I cannot get used to feeling bad now--it's AWFUL. Listen to this:


http://tinyurl.com/OOVHissyFit


It's wonderful, then, to have a hissy fit when you're out of range of the Vortex, because it means that you're used to being in there! YAY!!!!


I went to work today. I haven't been working outside the house much in the past couple of weeks as we've prepared our home for the fabulous kitchen remodel that is now underway. I've been in the Vortex quite a bit as I've packed things up and done some demanifestation (I always get the best stuff!) I can't say that I was in the Vortex as I contemplated working and I was doing a little bit of negative prepaving by worrying about getting ready with a displaced kitchen and things just not where you're used to them. I've got to hand it to us, though, we have set up a cool basement kitchen and my fabulous partner is quite the organizer thanks to his long camping history, so it turned out to be kind of a breeze. 


On the drive to work, I had the new Shirley McLaine book in my CD player. This is on loan to me--I've never read any of her books before--but I had recently thought about it and then, voila, my lovely brother-in-law put it into my hands w/out knowing anything of my intention to explore her work. This gave me the opportunity to figure out one of the ways in which I push against things. It's recently been pointed out to me by my MOST EXCELLENT brother that there is a difference between judgement and discernment. In listening to Ms. MacLaine, I discern that she pushes against a lot of things. As I listened to the CD, I began to mentally complain about her long lists of things that are wrong, criminal, horrible, unfair, etc. in the world. In fact, I found myself saying out loud, "NOTHING IS BROKEN, SHIRL!! GET OVER IT!"


And there it is, I discerned for a minute and then I started to get irritated. Could I have turned it off? YES! Could I have skipped a cut? YES! What's really interesting, though, is that in there amongst all the things that most would agree are awful and should be pointed out and complained about, there was a lot of beautiful stuff and wisdom and insight and a sense of humor and a lovely reading voice and lots of cool stories, so I didn't want to miss all of that. I got it that I could appreciate all of the wonderful stuff that she knows and just la, la, la, ignore the rest and just love her right where she is. I don't have to get irritated because she's not an Abraham person--she just isn't. But I can love her for who she is and as I did that this morning on the freeway, I started to get into the Vortex. And it didn't hurt that the clouds were magnificent or that I was going to get to spend the day with teenagers or that I was wearing a pretty blouse, or that my car runs so well, or that traffic was great or that it was Wednesday when I can go into work a little later than usual, etc. Just so many things to appreciate. And all of a sudden, POOF, I'm in the Vortex. And all because of Shirley MacLaine! Thanks, Shirl, I love you! Thanks for being the trailblazer that you've been in our culture, making it possible to speak openly of other dimensions and realities and probably even opening the way for Abraham to be called forth by all of us seekers.


Is it any wonder that I had an absolutely wonderful day at work? I even did one of the meditations during a prep period. I also had time to do some reading and did lots of positive reinforcement with students and built or improved upon existing relationships with them. I just got to spread the love around and it was cool.


Is it also any wonder that in speaking with the fantastic guy who's working on our kitchen, I found that I live in a very nicely constructed house that is free of hidden complications? With, in fact, admirable construction that is almost totally in line with modern standards? He even pointed out some extra space available for storage if we want to open it up. My fabulous partner found us some great people to work with throughout this process and I so appreciate him and all of these other cooperative components. Life is so good!

The emptied-out-soon-to-be-demolished kitchen.

The demolished kitchen. Did I mention that these workers are extremely tidy and clean up after themselves beautifully?

Other amazing and wonderful occurrences:
Friend received my call while she was getting ready to dial me (we hadn't spoken for weeks and had both been thinking of one another). And my conversation with her encouraged me to get even more deliberate in my own thinking that day.


Aforementioned brother-in-law and I met a whole slew of cool local musicians at a coffee shop/restaurant and I was asked by one to please give him a list of my favorite 70's fusion/jazz/funk/soul music. This is literally a dream come true! One conversation that morning led to another and another as different twenty- and thirty-something players streamed in to rehearse in the space adjoining the restaurant. At one point I stated, "This is a truly leading edge conversation we're having right now," to which one of the guys replied, "Yes, and I want to have more." (He sat down at our table and we continued to raise our vibration en masse.)


An almost undreamable gift was given me by my most generous brother-in-law: his Nikon digital SLR he no longer uses since he upgraded to a more modern Nikon than this one. Yikes! It is a fantastic gift and is intended to spur me on to take more and better pics of my own artwork. He has always taken scores of pictures at this house because I love to arrange and juxtapose objects into tableaux everywhere in my home and he gets what I'm doing and appreciates it.


And then, a fabulous acquaintance from an Abraham group I was involved in at one time sent me this link which contains something so beautiful that I played with it for less than a minute and then dived in to writing this blogpost just so I could share it:

Move your mouse around to create even MORE patterns and colors.  Pretty amazing!

http://inoyan.narod.ru/kaleidoskop.swf

*OOV=out of the Vortex

Abraham: Aligned With Destruction

Our new kitchen will be very different from the old. I document the old as the new, already complete, creation comes into focus.

For many, many years I have yearned for (Step 1=Asking) a new and improved kitchen. From the moment I asked, it has been in my Vortex where Source has been calling me to come see what I've created. When I visited the Vortex to think about our new kitchen, I would almost instantly get spit out as I fretted over the details such as cost, who would do the work, how I would have to fight to get what I wanted, etc. I also did a lot of justifying about why I needed and deserved a new kitchen and I sometimes felt guilty about wanting a really nice kitchen instead of just a serviceable one. Phoenix-Yuma for about 10 years. 

I tell that little scrap of a truly long (and boring) tale of woe (I love me very much) because today I stand in a new and improved place of knowing precisely because of all that orneriness. Ten years is a long time to spend observing current reality (which is always old news) and to completely ignore the magnificence of walking into the new kitchen that I created the minute I asked for it. I, like most of us, love to be able to see, feel, touch and physically experience a manifestation. In fact we truly believe that it's not real until we can see it. I don't have a new kitchen today, but today I can see it. Every time I wash a dish I see the new sink. As I clean the white floor I see the new and beautiful dirt-hiding floor. I don't have the sink or the new floor, but I know they're coming. I'm certain of it. I have no doubt. So even as I stand in my currently manifested much-worse-for-the-wear, shabby, sad-looking little kitchen, I can experience elation.  This certainty, this knowing is the key. I can feel wonderful in this moment because of the certainty of the new kitchen. So the next time I'm in the Vortex and get spit out because I can't see what's in there very clearly, I believe that I will be able to come back to this feeling of certainty and get right back in. I will be able to remember that any worries I have about details just mean I need to get more general in my imagining or that I just need to switch my focus to something else that makes me feel good in the moment. The more time I spend in the Vortex, the clearer my vision becomes. My kitchen has been in my Vortex all along; it's just that today I can enjoy it, even without the physical manifestation, because now I can see it.

Source calls me constantly to come look at what I've created. I'm so excited to see how the actual process of destruction and rebuilding will unfold. I'm ignoring all the negative things "they" say about a remodel and am focusing on how joyous any experience can be when I remember that the whole Universe is on my side and rooting for me. 

A remodel is an on-purpose and planned destruction. I'm inviting a man to come in and bash in walls and tear things apart. It's just too beautiful a metaphor to ignore to look at my life in the same way. I've invited many people in who have seemingly caused destruction only to discover that all that misery and suffering actually caused my stream to move really, really fast, thus creating a potentially fabulous life. Here, let's let Abraham tell us all about it:

http://tinyurl.com/HoorayForBadLife

Yes, it's 40 minutes long and it's worth every minute.

Abraham Rampages About Music

I took a lot of pictures of my "old" kitchen as I prepared for the manifestation of my new kitchen. This blue glass is all packed away now. Cabinets arrive Wednesday!

On January 16th 2011, I wrote a Vortex Diary about seeing the Oregon Symphony perform Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2. (http://vortexdiary.blogspot.com/2011_01_16_archive.html)


Emanuel Ax was the guest pianist and Emmanuel Villaume was the guest conductor. I still think about that concert almost every day because it was such a dramatic experience of being swept into the Vortex in a completely rapturous and Divine manner. Here is an excerpt from that Vortex Diary in which I tried to put the experience into words:

"There are many moments in my life in which music has moved me immensely. There are a few that have moved me with such intensity that I know that my body, soul and spirit have permanently altered. For me it happened at the beginning of the second movement. Something about those opening chords hit me and I began ascending on a musical skyrocket. And then I went with the piece into the Vortex with Brahms and we melded minds in there and I was in love with him and music and the world and with life itself. During the third movement I dissolved into the music. The atoms of my body were unbound and floated above and around the Universe amongst the sound waves and vibrations made by not only the instruments but by all the expanded Vortexes of us all there together."

Tonight I found a YouTube clip in which Abraham, in response to a request from a conductor-in-training, does a rampage of appreciation that expands on what I was trying to convey. It's short and to-the-point and I couldn't help but offer it to you all:

http://tinyurl.com/WhatAConductorDoes

Enjoy!

Abraham: Words Don't Teach Me; Life Experience Does

A couple of friends from the current kitchen window sill who will be packed away while our new kitchen manifests.

If I want to know where I am currently vibrating, all I really have to do is to see what it is I am currently manifesting. It is always a match, no exceptions. And while that is very good news, sometimes it takes me a while to stop observing the current unwanted manifestation long enough to change my current pattern of thought. When I'm out of the Vortex, it seems like I can hardly remember a thing about how to get back in. Simple and beautiful things like:


-I don't have to think about this right now.


-I'm doing that thing that I do (that keeps me out of the Vortex); aren't I precious?


-I'm having a Step 1 (asking)moment; this will make Step 3 (allowing) even sweeter.


-You're welcome, Universe! (It is our asking, after all, that expands the Universe.)


-I am where I am. (Acceptance)


-17 seconds (Holding a thought that brings relief for as little as 17 seconds attracts more thoughts like it.)


-68 seconds (Holding a thought for 68 seconds resets our current vibration.)


I'm in the Vortex often enough that when I'm out lately (and this is very good news, really) I feel a little like this young woman (whom I absolutely adore for asking this question):
http://tinyurl.com/HairBlowingBack


And sometimes it takes me a while to get back in because I am human, just like Esther:
http://tinyurl.com/EstherSoldOutBook


And when I get back in, it feels so fantastically fabulous that I bless all those OOV experiences, all of those Step 1 moments, because that is how I really learn. I am also reminded how much I learn from all the young people with whom I interact in all the classrooms I visit. And sometimes I remember how much I have learned from my own son who has always had the courage to disregard so much of what I tried to teach him from outside the Vortex. The young woman in the following clip reminded me so much of my son that it moved me to tears of joy:

http://tinyurl.com/ThisS-IsAmazing

And it made me laugh in appreciation of what it is I used to believe about getting a job: Get up early; dress for the job; apply for every job you have time to apply for that day. When I tried to teach that strategy to my job-seeking son, he simply replied, "Mom, why would I apply for a job I don't want?" Touch

é!

I recently had plans to visit Portland. While I was planning to have fun, I mixed into my vibration some dutiful, responsible, adult thoughts about what I "should" accomplish (shoulding all over myself). Luckily my inner being just would not cooperate and kept calling me to thoughts of relaxation, renewal, invigoration and just pure FUN. Oh, I tried to ignore the call of Source, but it was just too powerful that morning as I arose without an alarm after sleeping as much as my body desired. I stayed in the shower for a LONG time enjoying the water pouring over my head. I chatted with my body as I welcomed me back into areas I had been ignoring. I basked and dawdled and fussed over myself, experiencing almost intoxicating doses of self-appreciation. I remembered that life is supposed to be good and that it is REALLY good when you feel your way into the Vortex. Every time I had a thought about time or commitment or duty or pleasing anyone but myself, I said things like: 

"There is no hurrying in the Vortex." 

and

"Things always work out for me." 

and 

"Feeling good is THE most important thing I have to do."

And when I called my son to tell him that I would be there in an hour, he confirmed that it was the perfect time for me to arrive.

Here are a few things that I lined up with that day:

-a brand new pressure cooker (instruction booklet included) for $10.00. What is remarkable is that the day before I had seen an ad for an upcoming sale on a pressure cooker. I had pinned the ad to a bulletin board in my kitchen. 

-a short visit with two amazing little folks (grandkids of a longtime acquaintance) whom I found adorable and entertaining 

-a very long conversation with a 91-year-old man whom I met, ironically enough, in the clock section of the store. 

-And when I finally made it to a favorite sushi restaurant it was packed. I signed in on a very long waiting list. I noticed that I was the only party of one and that there was one seat at the bar. I asked the waiter and he said it was their policy to make people wait their turn. I began to hear some negative thoughts arise, but I also heard him say, "It's really up to the hostess." A woman who overheard the conversation approached me and wanted to commiserate about how unjust she felt this policy was. I told her that I was going to chat with the hostess (I didn't tell her that I was also making the decision to step away from the negative thinking--both hers and mine). I asked the hostess if I could take the single seat at the bar and (you guessed it) she said, "Sure! Have a seat."

ASK AND IT IS GIVEN!

*I am going to spend some time in the Vortex thinking about how much I appreciate a consistent font.

 

 

Abraham: Vortextual Recipes for Split Peas and Elder Fashionistas

Wish I'd "styled" the soup bowl a little. This is the OMG version of the recipe that follows. Split pea soup is not the most beautiful of soups until you actually put it in your mouth. That's why I put it next to my gorgeous and beautiful-sounding singing bowl I recently purchased from Goodwill for $3.99. I often say to myself when I am shopping thrift stores: "I always get the best stuff."
And so it is.

This blogpost takes a departure from previous Vortex Diaries. So many things put me into the Vortex--it's not just Abraham for me as I am sure it is not for you all. I recently dabbled in some contrast and Abraham is right--it feels worse to be OOV now than it used to and you can't go back to not knowing how good it feels to be in the Vortex. So today I feel WONDERFUL!!!!


Susan Powter currently focuses on what she perceives to be threatening and scary about government and politics and reality. I try to ignore all that by seeing her through the eyes of source and because I know that so many of us have patterns of activation like that and because who she really is creates amazing recipes. I've always loved split pea soup and with our recent cool weather, have craved it. So when she meandered through her version on a podcast I decided to try it. I rarely follow a recipe exactly because I've devised ways to cut prep and cooking times.


Susan Powter's original recipe:

3-4 cloves garlic finely chopped

6 onions diced

olive oil--a few tablespoons

salt

pepper

chicken bouillon--a couple of cubes

a lot of dried split peas (3-4 cups probably)

Saute the garlic in a large pan in the olive oil for a few minutes. Add onions, salt and pepper  and saute until the onions are tender. Sprinkle split peas over the top thickly. Add water and bouillon. Cook until peas are tender or obliterated--you decide.

What I did:

5 onions diced

5 T minced garlic (or more--I get the minced garlic in water from Winco)

4 T (maybe that much--probably less) olive oil

1 tsp salt

3/4 C fake chicken broth from Life Source

The garlic, onions, salt and olive oil get cooked at 50% power in microwave in black silicone pan for about 20-25 min. I check after 15 to stir and adjust seasoning. You can use a ceramic bowl for this, of course--just make sure it's covered. I used to do my onions on high, but I think they're better cooked more slowly.

I boil 2 pots of water in electric tea kettle. I turn the crockpot on high. I put "a lot" of split peas into the boiling water (3-4 cups).

I add the cooked onions. I cover and leave it overnight and probably for a couple of hours after I get up.

Variations:

For the first OMG version, I added these ingredients (to taste) to the onion mixture before nuking:

Balsamic Vinegar

Honey

Other assorted vinegars

For the second OOOMG version I added these ingredients (to taste) to the onion mixture before nuking:

Balsamic Vinegar

Honey

Other assorted vinegars

Kirin (sweet cooking wine)

Red chili flakes

Cayenne

This soup just keeps getting better each time I tinker with the recipe. 

And another thing that absolutely rocked my world is this COOL blog by Ari Seth Cohen. It's called Advanced Style and it is AMAZING. I found out about it when Rice Freeman-Zachary tweeted about it and linked to her blog, where she features a very cool podcast interview with Cohen. It's the April 19th post:

http://voodoonotes.blogspot.com

While I listened I surfed over to Cohen's blog and was delighted:

http://advancedstyle.blogspot.com

And of course I cannot leave the Vortex without offering some Abraham links:

http://tinyurl.com/BlissThroughoutDay

This is a very long Abraham clip I promised to folks from the fabulous Abraham Meetup group put together by Kerie Logan (check out her website listed on the side bar--she is brilliant):

http://tinyurl.com/LaterGatorNorthLA

Nos vemos en La Vortex. (I don't know if it's masculine or feminine in there, but I'll default to the femme.