lara simmons

Message from The Universe: "Embrace the stillness of this time. Let it surround you, nourish you, embrace you. Drink it in and let it fill you. Stillness can be a great gift. Accept it. Welcome it. Love it."

 " Do less, enjoy it more. "  --The Universe It seems like everywhere I go in Seattle these days, I see one of these signs. SLOW. It has happened three times today and it isn't even noon. My first inclination was to be annoyed. WHY are "they" (some anonymous they, probably the government) doing all of this road maintenance during the holiday season when "we" (all the rest of us who are not the government) are all trying to get sh** done? But yesterday, while complaining silently to myself, another voice chimed in, Maybe it's not a hindrance, but a reminder... A reminder to slow down, to take it easy, to enjoy. A few years ago during "the holidays," I was feeling stressed out and overwhelmed. Instead of pushing myself, I decided to lie down and meditate for a few minutes. As I lay there breathing, The Universe sent me this little piece of wisdom, " Do less, enjoy it more. " Do less, enjoy it more. This became m...

Thank you God for showing me what it means to be kind,  for teaching me how to be kind and for filling my heart with kindness.   --A kindness prayer from The Universe  ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Fill your heart with kindness. 28 Days of Kindness .

Being kind doesn't mean sacrificing yourself or putting yourself last or being unkind to yourself. It just means saying NO with kindness. --The Universe    ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Want to practice saying NO with kindness? Practice with me in 28 Days of Kindness .

Kindness is love in action. --The Universe  ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Find even more kindness in my book 28 Days of Kindness , available now.

And here we go again! One theme flows from another as we continue the conversation with each other, with ourselves and with the great and powerful Universe which speaks to each and every one of us if we will but listen. The theme this week is INTUITION or LISTENING TO YOURSELF. As important as it is to listen to others , it is equally important to listen to ourselves . Here are some of my favorite quotes about listening to yourself. I hope you enjoy them and that they inspire you to pay closer attention to that still small voice inside: "In our 'doing' society, we have a zeal for sorting out our agenda and implementing it. But in my experience the world is there to guide you at every moment. The world is calling you to come play, to come risk, to come let your heart burn with a passion that will make sense of your life. The world will speak to you as intimately as your mother did when you were a child, if you can allow the body to teach you its different way of list...

"Opening to the world begins to benefit ourselves and others simultaneously. The more we relate with others, the more quickly we discover where we’re blocked. Seeing this is helpful, but it’s also painful. Sometimes we use it as ammunition against ourselves: we aren’t kind, we aren’t honest, we aren’t brave, and we might as well give up right now. But when we apply the instruction to be soft and nonjudgmental to whatever we see at this very moment, the embarrassing reflection in the mirror becomes our friend. We soften further and lighten up more, because we know it’s the only way we can continue to work with others and be of any benefit in the world. This is the beginning of growing up." -- Pema Chodron "Fucked up people will try to tell you otherwise, but boundaries have nothing to do with whether you love someone or not. They are not judgments, punishments, or betrayals. They are a purely peaceable thing: the basic principles you identify for yourself that define t...

"If you LISTEN,  you will know everything  you need to know."   -- The Universe 

" Your job is not who you are, your car is not who you are, your looks are not who you are, not even your body...is who you are.  You're simply on a journey, just trying things out, to see what you like, to see what you don't... because you can, because it's temporary, and because it's all on the way 'home.'" --The Universe on Tut.com My sister-in-law gave me a Fitbit for my birthday. I was excited because I had been wanting to try one and it was a nice surprise. I started wearing it and immediately became obsessed with how many "steps" I was taking each day. I loved the days when I got the vibrating wrist party that celebrates 10,000 steps and I lamented the days when I didn't quite make it. It motivated me to take the dog for an extra walk around the block at lunchtime (500 steps) or to do a quick 30 minutes on the treadmill (1500 steps) or even to run around Greenlake more often (6000 steps). It also pointed out how s...

"Be grateful for every little thing today. Starting with the small things, you automatically appreciate the bigger gifts you have been given." --From The Akashic Records   I ran out of gratitude quotes this weekend. The one I used yesterday was the last one I had in my database. I panicked a little and then I remembered that I had asked The Universe to provide and I decided to trust that The Universe would.  During an Akashic Records reading for a friend last week I got an idea - why not ask the Records for some quotes about gratitude? What I received in my reading with the Masters, Teachers and Loved Ones is what I will be posting this week. I hope you will enjoy it and find it inspirational. Today I am grateful for: 1) The guidance and inspiration from my Masters, Teachers and Loved Ones through the Akashic Records. They always come through for me and I am so grateful. 2) Hearing " The Gambler " at church on Sunday. One thing I love about the...

 "I think you should be in gratitude." --The Universe via PCQ (Lawn Dude) Sometimes the Universe sends us messages via unexpected angels.  A couple of summers ago I was having one of "those" days - the kids were restless, the day seemed unusually long, the summer hot and endless - when our lawn guy showed up to mow.  He has been mowing our lawn for years now so if I am home I often go out and say "Hello," offer him something to drink or shoot the breeze for awhile.  On this particular day I started complaining about the day and my life. When I was done he took a look around - at the freshly mowed yard, large for a city neighborhood, at my kids playing on the stairs nearby, and dropped this load of wisdom on me right out the blue.  Immediately I realized he was right and it changed my whole day. Suddenly I saw my life through his eyes and it didn't look so bad. In fact, it was a life to be in gratitude for. And so I was.  M...

"We have the opportunity every moment to focus on the good." -- Karen Lindvig Last night, in the middle of fixing dinner I got the call. "MOM! I NEED HELP!" When I went upstairs to see what my older son needed, I found him standing in the center of his room with the huge Fathead of Russell Wilson he had gotten for Christmas all tangled up in a sticky, messy ball. Normally this would be a yelling situation for me. Number one, I was in the middle of fixing dinner. Number two, Fatheads are not cheap. And number three, he had not used common sense in trying to do something so big without asking for help. But thankfully - and this is the first thing on my list of what I am grateful for today - one of my guides or The Universe or my Higher Self tapped me on the shoulder and invited me to do it differently this time. To focus on the good. My husband volunteered to finish making dinner and I set my sights on making this a positive learning experience for ...

"If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, 'Thank you,' that would suffice." -- Meister Eckhart Another way to practice gratitude is to say "Thank You" to God or The Universe, or whatever name you give to your higher power, as you go about your day. When something good happens, or something you perceive as bad doesn't happen, say "Thank You" in the moment. Do this all day long, whenever you think of it. If you would like, extend this practice to those around you. Spread gratitude wherever you go thanking those who help you as you go about your day. If your kids eat all their breakfast say "Thank you," if your spouse unloads the dishwasher, say "Thank you." Say "Thank you," to the bus driver who gets you to work safely and to the deli counter worker who makes your lunch. Say "Thank you" as often as you remember and know that it is enough. Thank YOU for being here. Thank YOU for readi...

"Remember how LUCKY you are."  --The Universe to me in 2004.   Today I am grateful for: 1) My Life - I don't mean to start so big, but I just finished the book " Escape from Camp 14 ," a book about life in a North Korean Prison Camp. The life lived in these camps is unimaginably brutal; many of the children and adults born in these camps have never known anything else. Just to have been born in the Western world is something to be profoundly grateful for.  2) Family time on the couch - After my younger son's basketball game, we all ended up on the couch with many blankets and many books.  3) Sleep - I drank coffee during the day and did not sleep well the night before last. Lying down last night I could feel myself start to drift off immediately and I was so grateful to no longer be under the influence of caffeine. 

"What if focusing on the good in our lives could lead to an increase in good?"   --Karen Lindvig, Senior Minister at Seattle Unity As 28 Days of Love began to wind down, I once again found myself asking the question, "What's next?" The word that kept rattling around in my brain was Gratitude . It made sense to me that Gratitude would come after Love, but I wasn't sure until I went to church last Sunday. Reverend Karen spoke about mirrors - how the world mirrors back to us our own internal state - and about how to shift things if what is being mirrored for you is not what you would like to see. She asked this question: "What if focusing on the good in our lives could lead to an increase in good?" And I knew that was my green light from The Universe for 30 Days of Gratitude. The practice is relatively easy, notice three things each day that you are grateful for.  That's it. Just notice three things. You can write them in a journal...

"She truly loved herself and therefore had no reason to hate anyone else." --The Universe to me in an old blog post , reprinted below. December 17, 2010 "Emanate love to all in your sphere without distinction or prejudice."  --Sunyata Satchitananda from the website www.mythiclove.net I went to a Holiday concert this week that a friend of mine and her children were performing in. It was a lovely performance; the director was enthusiastic, the songs were uplifting and everyone seemed to be having a great time. There was one woman in the choir who particularly stood out for me. She was standing in the back, not doing anything special, but as she sang she just radiated love. I watched her closely throughout the whole concert, trying to figure out her secret. I studied her face to try and see what was different. Physically, there was nothing special about her face. It was more attractive then some, less attractive than others, but...

"Love what IS." --The Universe (inspired by the work of Byron Katie ) We are experiencing some technical difficulties with our internet today so this is what I am practicing - loving what is. And that includes Mercury in retrograde .  This is one of those practices that feels essential, like if I could master it, I would have mastered everything else almost automatically.  If I were loving what is I would be living in the moment, I would be forgiving in the moment, I would be working towards peace and spreading love and so on.... So I invite you to love what is today, even if that includes some technological snafus! (This also works well on other homo sapiens :) [Thanks for this post goes to my sister, Jennifer Alhasa , who introduced me to the work of Byron Katie and who is always there for me with a reminder to Love what IS!]

"L ☺ ☺ K with eyes of love." -- The Universe  I have no idea where this quote came from - did I hear it somewhere and forget to write it down? - but it sprang to mind, fully formed, this morning as I was talking to a friend.  She wasn't feeling so attractive and was lamenting how her body had changed over the years, how she was aging and feeling just plain ugly.  I empathized and commiserated and finally advised her to look upon herself with "eyes of love." And then I made her say three things she liked about her body before we hung up. Because that's the key isn't it? How we look.  We can look with eyes of judgment. We can look with eyes of guilt. We can look with eyes of hatred or even with eyes of lust, but none of these give us the clearest picture of ourselves or others. It is only when we look with eyes of love that we see as God sees, as we truly are.  So I challenge you today to look with eyes ...

WWLD? "What would love do?" --The Universe The exercise for this month is simple: every time you encounter a situation which is difficult, painful, or confusing, simply STOP. Breathe. And ask yourself, "What would love do?" Then wait for the answer. If this feels too vague, here are some alternate questions to try: • What is the highest good for all concerned in this situation?  • How could this situation be win-win?  • How can I show love to myself/this person right now? You might also come up with a question that works for you.  If the answer doesn't come right away, continue to breathe until you feel you have more clarity. Or, if you need to make a decision right away, make the best decision you can make in the moment, knowing you are doing your very best at this time.  Later you can go back and reflect on your decision; was that what love would have done? If not, what do you think love would have done? Can you try that next...

"The great thing about JOY is not that it lasts, but that it always comes around again." --The Universe As I have mentioned, I struggled this time at the ten-day silent meditation retreat I went on last month. One of the things I struggled with, ironically, was the lack of JOY I felt in the discipline and austerity of the program this time. Normally I am very comfortable with this kind of environment. Discipline. Austerity. To-the-minute timekeeping. These are things at which most mid-western-raised adults excel. Not this time. This time I was hungry for joy, for freedom, even a little bit of excess. I knew this flew in the face of the idea of anicca , or impermanence. The whole point of this meditation is to learn not to crave positive feelings and sensations, as well as not to have aversion to negative feelings and sensations, because both have the inherent quality of impermanence, but I couldn't help it. I wanted to feel some JOY. So on my daily post-lunch ...