follow your path

Lately I've been thinking a lot about my life and the journey I've been on over the last several years. Moving back to my home state, getting older and changing careers can do that to ya:) Reflecting on the past while also feeling each moment and wondering what the future holds can be a very peaceful place...as long as you don't dwell on the past or the future too long! What make us choose the places where we are? Circumstances, family, jobs? I know for me it was a conscious decision to change...to rise above to a new challenge, a new way of life. It was a change that was years in the making before we moved to Indiana. As some of you may or may not know, my story of transformation began about 6 years ago. My husband and I were put in a position that we had yet been in before. We were met with the decision of suddenly having to let go of our sweetest little doggie Peach. Within one week, she got severely sick and after making a trip to the vet, we found out that we would not be bringing her back home with us. She was sick with untreatable tumors all in her body and could not be healed. She was very, very sick. When we heard the news, I collapsed and felt this amazing heartbreak that I had never felt before. The idea of living without our sweet Peach was not something that I had considered. We had never lost a pet before. It was so hard. So we tearfully said our goodbyes and the grief kicked in. Even though it's been almost 6 years, I remember it like it was yesterday. The pain was real and our hearts ached. I found myself having the hardest time getting past the grief, so I started searching for ways to heal. I had always had a spiritual side, but it had been buried for quite a while. Life can do that to you sometimes, it can bury your deepest beliefs when you aren't paying attention. So I started back on my quest of spirituality to find relief from this grief. What I found was so much more! I started receiving reiki and therapy from a beautiful healer in town. As I started to talk and heal and understand why this tragedy had happened....it made a clearing for me to see the gifts that I had been pushing away for many years. Receiving the healing helped me to heal from lots of old trauma and wounds that I had been carrying around for a long time. With this clarity, I realized that even though losing Peach was so tough, she was the one helping me to see that it was time to move forward. It was time to open up to these gifts that I had been given. Her death helped me to return to center and follow my true path. I needed to learn how to help people, just like I was being helped by my healer. Peach has been a great teacher to me in life and in death. Once I opened up to the possibility of this, so many synchronicities started happening. When I allowed myself to listen and be open to much more than my human eye could see my life began to change. This is also when I discovered breathwork. I randomly received an email one day that was like a newsletter. I don't even remember who it was from, but I remember scrolling down and at the bottom it spoke about Shamanic Breathwork. I was so intrigued! What was this breathwork? I did minimal research and just called to set up an appointment. I blindly signed up for something I really had no idea what it was, but my gut was telling me that I needed to go. I am SO happy I went! The idea of moving my grief and trauma myself out of my body with my own breath with the assistance of Melanie (my facilitator and amazing friend and human) I was able to shine a light on this darkness that had been haunting me. Through Peach's death she showed me that only her body died, not her spirit....she is and always will be with me. Even to this day...she continues to help me and still offers her big heart full of love to us! So as I continued on this healing path, I realized that in healing myself I was able to help others. It's just like a domino effect, when one of us heals we shine our light on others and they can feel it and then they do the same and so on and so on. I owe so much of my life to Peach. She made my heart grow during our time here on earth together and she continues to expand my love an heart to myself and others. I tell this story today because I have been thinking of Peach so much this week. In just a few weeks, it will be 6 years since we said goodbye. I still miss her being here with us in body, but I am eternally grateful to her for opening my eyes to so many things. She is the reason I have become a healer. So I ask...what has put you in the place you are in right now? Are you allowing the flow of life to guide you on your path? Are you following your passion in this life? We don't all need a traumatic event to happen to make us slow down and check in, that's just how it happened for me. I needed it to be loud to get my attention. Sometimes we just need a gentle reminder to stop and ask ourselves...is this where I want to be? Am I getting and giving everything that I need right now? Love will support you at any time in any place in your life. I offer my love and light to you to expand your own light and love. How will you shine in your life? Here's to the mighty expansion of all of our hearts so that we may shine across the universe and beyond!

Until next time....much love and big hugs!

Trista