Last December, the day after Christmas, we said goodbye to our nearly 20-year-old wise kitty, Misty. We were bereft, since she was the last of the six cats who were such a beloved part of our family through the years and she had been with us since birth. Luckily, we did not allow ourselves to be "catless" for very long, since the house was so empty we couldn't stand it. We found these two simply amazing kittens at our local Humane Society and have been enjoying their lively, energetic kitten comics ever since. In a quirk of serendipity, they were each named and had the same coloring as two of our kitties who were gone over the Rainbow Bridge. We knew immediately upon seeing them piled together sleeping in the window, that they were ours.

They are without a doubt the most intelligent, inventive, playful, athletic and adventurous cats who have ever owned us! Our breakable plates, glasses and knickknacks have taken a pretty big hit, (six glasses, four cereal bowls, two cat food dishes, and a crystal basket so far) but we are so grateful that these furry felines have chosen to be with us for their life's adventure. Below, please enjoy their romp through the cushions. They can entertain themselves endlessly with pretty much anything: paper bags, boxes, a crack in the tile floor, their tails, each other. Here's to feline fun!

I admit it. I'm a serial reader. An unapologetic bookworm and one who revels in discovering new ideas and insights through the elegant expressions of the written word. My home is strewn with books in various stages of consumption and deciding which books to carry with me on vacations has always been a dilemma. Thankfully, in our world of digitally available books and reading devices such as Kindle, I can carry a vast array of reading material with me wherever I go. My back is very grateful for this miracle of technology!

And, yes, like Desiderius Erasmus as quoted above, books can be considered a form of addiction. However, if one must be addicted to anything, I think being a book-a-holic is one of the more benign and beneficial ones.

Recently, a friend asked me for some recommendations of books that focus on creating optimal wellness and using various techniques of positive affirmation and creative visualization to bring about desired life changes. In other words, to learn how our past experience, current frame of mind, intentions and words come together to create the reality in which we sense our world. Well, it took me a week to narrow the list so I wouldn't overwhelm my friend!

Here are some of the books that have guided and changed me, enriched my life, deepened my understanding of my own empowering choices, and helped me to create a rewarding and fulfilled life. I share them with you in hopes they may bring any who are seeking wisdom and direction closer to creating a beautiful, abundant and optimally healthy physical and spiritual life.

The first is a book that introduced me to the concepts of creating optimal wellness in all areas of life: self-responsibility, breathing, sensing, eating, moving, feeling, thinking, playing & working, communicating, sex, finding meaning, and transcending. It is the Wellness Workbook: How to Achieve Enduring Health and Vitality by John W. Travis, M.D. and Regina Sara Ryan. This book came into my life at a time when I was poised on the precipice of a major life change. It allowed me to truly understand where much of my thinking about health and wellness originated, how to make balance and optimal wellness in all areas of life a priority, how to analyze what was not working and why. It empowered me with tools by which to affect the changes I so desired. Looking back, I can see that it was nothing short of miraculous in the impact it had on my life. When I say this is a life-changing book, I mean it! Now in its third edition, it packs a great deal of information and help into this interactive, workbook design in a way that leads to self-discovery and balance in all aspects of life. You can explore it using the link above at Amazon.

Another book that made a significant difference in my life is Alan Cohen's Daily Dose of Sanity: A Five-Minute Soul Recharge for Every Day of the Year. This book has a magical way of bringing clarity and insight, with humor, warmth, personal anecdotes and stories, as well as inspiring quotes and questions which prod the reader into taking action. It distills so much wisdom into one-page daily readings that one can use it year after year, finding new meaning, depth and application to our ever-changing lives. Alan is a gifted teacher, with an engaging style, bringing his wisdom and insight as a nationally-known author, speaker, and life coach to uplift, encourage and empower readers to become their best selves.

One of my favorite authors is Oriah Mountain Dreamer, whose poem, The Invitation, went viral and inspired the augmentation of her beautiful prose into a book, then a series of books, with breathtaking honesty, integrity and eloquence. She paints the inner workings of our hearts with her stories and embodies gentle wisdom and vision to cut through the outer trappings of life to the core of our emotions. It's difficult to choose one of her books as my favorite because they have all been dependable, well-loved companions on the journey, but I think The Dance is the one that speaks most directly to me now. From the cover: "What if the question is not why am i so infrequently the person i really want to be, but why do i so infrequently want to be the person i really am?" And, the back cover brings it even closer to home: "Don't tell me how wonderful things will be...someday. Show me you can risk being completely at peace, truly okay with the way things are right now in this moment, and again in the next and the next and the next..."

So, there you have it. Three of my most trusted companions on life's journey. What books have you found completely captivating, that speak to your heart and open the eyes of your soul? Please share in the comments. We can all use some inspiration!

Misty is my 19-year-old kitty, who likes to share her vast experience of life from a feline perspective, here on my blog. I am just the conduit for her "whisker wisdom". Hope you enjoy her insights and musings!

1. Follow your inner feline curiosity. There's a big wide world on the other side of the window. You can decide whether to view it with fear and uncertainty or with curiosity and delight. Choose delight!

2. Groom yourself to look your best. Good grooming is very important. Wash your face and ears often and keep your fur in place. Getting all ruffled is not attractive. Neither is getting puffed up to twice your size unless the neighborhood bully is bothering you. In that case, it's perfectly acceptable. Claws can even be unsheathed when there is something crucial to defend. Like your food bowl, or your mousie toy.

3. Be vulnerable. Misty has mastered the art of vulnerability. She turns on her back with feet up in the air exposing her belly, inviting a rub. We can all find our individual way to express that trust and vulnerability to those we love. It's a sign of great strength to be open and invite others to metaphorically rub your tummy.

4. Be peaceful. Sometimes the very best thing to do is curl up on a cushion and meditate. Or take a nap. If we want peace, we must be peace-full. Cats know this. You can't "fight" for peace, you simply live it!

5. Creaky doesn't equal cranky necessarily. At the advance feline age of 19, Misty knows all about being creaky. But creakiness doesn't give you the right to be cranky. We all have days when it's hard to get motivated or we are moving slowly due to pain or injury. Go ahead and lick your wounds, but don't let grumpiness cause you to snarl at others or bite the hand that feeds you. Life isn't perfect, and at times it can be downright messy. But remember, misery is optional. You can always choose your response to life.

6. Stay active and engaged with life. Stretch yourself, mentally and physically (cats are good at the physical part!) I often observe Misty doing her morning yoga and try to follow her example. She sometimes assists me with mine, also, usually by rubbing against me or dragging her tail by my mouth. Do yoga, chase birds or geckos, be alert for mice and other interesting creatures crossing your path (or whatever your human equivalent of these activities may be). Have fun, play, learn new things, stretch your life to new dimensions! Hiding under the bed is not an option! Be brave and have an adventure today!

7. Practice looking cute. If you find yourself drawn into any problem or communication issue, such as putting your paw (foot) in your mouth, simply looking cute can prevent escalation. Misty is the absolute master of looking cute. She does it pretty much all the time, to varying degrees, making it very difficult to be angry or upset with her at all. Try it. Hint: it helps to practice with a mirror so you can experiment with various expressions and gestures. Too bad we humans don't have whiskers and multidirectional ears to generate extra cuteness, like cats do. I love Misty's "Yoda" ear position, which indicates relaxation and her whiskers-forward move, which means she is intensely interested or curious or about to pounce on something. If humans had feline type ears and whiskers, I'll bet we'd have far less miscommunication!

I woke early yesterday and felt the urge to go to the beach with my camera and what a spectacular show Mother Nature provided! These almost surreal watercolor photos are just as the camera saw them. They look painted or retouched, but they are just as they were served up by the Master Artist. Sigh. How awe-inspiring!

There are a few more in the gallery on the Art page of this site. Enjoy!

The Story of the Butterfly emerging was told to me originally years ago by a  minister, and it touched me deeply. Here's a version adapted by author Paul Coelho: "A man spent hours watching a butterfly struggling to emerge from its cocoon. It managed to make a small hole, but its body was too large to get through it. After a long struggle, it appeared to be exhausted and remained absolutely still.
 
The man decided to help the butterfly and, with a pair of scissors, he cut open the cocoon, thus releasing the butterfly. However, the butterfly’s body was very small and wrinkled and its wings were all crumpled.
 
The man continued to watch, hoping that, at any moment, the butterfly would open its wings and fly away. Nothing happened; in fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its brief life dragging around its shrunken body and shrivelled wings, incapable of flight.
 
What the man – out of kindness and his eagerness to help – had failed to understand was that the tight cocoon and the efforts that the butterfly had to make in order to squeeze out of that tiny hole were Nature’s way of training the butterfly and of strengthening its wings."       ~Anonymous

I am a caterpillar who wants to fly. I have been dutifully following Nature's path of struggle to break through the tiny hole in my cocoon, but I'm stuck, I'm exhausted and it's dark in here! No, don't come running (or walking) with the scissors. I must get unstuck myself, if I'm ever going to fly. Encouragement is appreciated, maybe even some cheering from the sidelines. You could throw me some chocolate. I'm not above needing a boost :) But, I am certain I can take on this life altering transformation, this scary-beautiful rebirth into a totally new way of being. I have faith. After all, a caterpillar has no way of knowing what its struggles are heralding. I do.

So, maybe I should re-title this blog post to: "Having a Butterfly Moment", since it's focusing on the positive outcome. But, the caterpillar moment is more honest. Still struggling. Still becoming. Still trying too hard to "be still and know".

Perhaps today will be the breakthrough to butterfly...

Is your soul feeling a little bit dusty today? Mine was too, until I started listening to this magical CD of plainsong (chant) done in exquisite perfection by the Trinity College Choir Cambridge - it's titled simply "Voce" for voice. It is soaring and creates in me an inner awakening or dawn. If you have not ever listened to this kind of music, I encourage you to be open to it and see if your soul needs dusting. I certainly feel brighter and richer for having rediscovered it today.

Passing it along for your en-JOY-ment! Check out their wonderful YouTube channel to listen to others of their recordings. My personal favorite on the Voce CD is the choral version of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings (Angus Dei).