Hitting Send

It was a Gloriously Beautiful day in Los Angeles yesterday, and I was going almost nowhere in the bumper-to-bumper afternoon traffic when a thought occurred to me: life is rather like traffic, in that one must go with the flow, yet be prepared for those little windows of opportunity when they present themselves. Let’s face it, we’re not all going at the same speed, as we each have our own obstacles and blocks to get through. We’re going through Beautiful, albeit challenging, changes. Not the ‘change is the only constant’ kind of changes, but Deep, expansive changes, stemming from a desire to follow that which has heart and meaning, staying in our own truth, and also an unwillingness to accept untruths, what no longer works for us and is out of balance. How wonderful is that?

The unexamined life is not worth living.

There is another analogy that I have been using to explain this process of change. When I clean my closet, I take everything out for reassessment. While having my stuff all over the room may *look* really messy, it *is*, in fact, in a positive process of change. It’s moving in a positive, forwardly direction, despite outward appearances. It is through reassessing my ’stuff’ that I find a new awareness, and in releasing that which no longer has meaning that a vacuous space is created for that which I *do* want in my life. I believe that this is happening not just in my life, and of those I know and Love, but is actually happening on a global scale. YAY! This is a Wonderful, much-needed process, for which we should be giving thanks, as it’s going to move things into better directions and restore balance!

I can tell you this, and I have it on good authority! Everything works out! We’ve been doing such great inner work, we can Trust that we will be carried through these challenging times. I know it’s a balancing act to both be letting go of the past and moving into the unknown future simultaneously. But we are ready! Just remember to stay grounded and positive with that which is swirling around you, while preparing for those little windows of opportunity when they arise. And, they will! So, when they do, be ready to take it *if* it is what you Truly want and have been magnetizing for yourself. You’ll be tested and distracted, as that is what the Universe does once declarations have been made. “Really? You want this and this? Hmmmm, what if throw *this* enticement at you?” Don’t you find? But we shall not be distracted, because we know, deep in our hearts and being what we Truly want for ourselves. And, as the inner creates the outer, all~ways, we shall Lovingly, consciously attract our heart’s desire. In Loving Gratitude and Perfect Timing!

Love and Many Blessings,
Antonia

“I’m coming to LA, and I’m bringing my Leo Goddess with me! You’re going to Love her! I just know it!!” my dear friend River (pictured above with Galaxi) excitedly told me on the phone. He was fulfilling his dream of traveling with his soul mate around the United States, visiting Sacred places and fellow nomads. When the sweet couple arrived on my doorstep a few days later, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but was glad that I could offer them a place to crash for a few days.

He was right about his Leo Goddess! I Loved her right from the start! Her name is Galaxi, (which is apropos, I assure you) and she is Quite the nomad and one you would most certainly want to have along with you on a journey, especially an uncharted one. She blends street smarts with a gentle, Loving heart; having both academic knowledge and an innate wisdom which allows her to flow with the new and changing in a beautifully trusting way.

“They’re magickal, you know?” she asked me one day.

My visitors and I had been resting, and having a moment of silence after a busy day of sightseeing. I looked at Galaxi, who gave no further indication as to what, in fact, was magickal, then gazed around the room for further clues. Ahhh! My eyes went straight to a beautiful, hand-painted platter which I had purchased many years prior in Puerta Vallerta. I had Loved its bright, cheerful, happy colours enough to warrant the inconvenience of getting it home in my suitcase, and have always been grateful that I did. “Hibiscus flowers?” I asked.

“Yeah! You can make a magickal spa treatment potion from them and it’ll make your skin and hair SOOOOO soft!!!” she delighted! She had learned of their luxurious properties in the jungles of Peru. Or was it Mexico? And, today, she was going to teach me her ‘Magick Flower Potion’!

“It’s the best if you’re going to backpack in tropical places,” she told me. “If you’ve ever backpacked much you know that shampoo and conditioner are extraordinarily heavy, unnecessary luxuries that you kind of miss going into month two, or even week two for some.” (Ummm, most definitely Galaxi, but, I’m kinda thinkin’ *day* two! *giggle*) “You can even use it on dreads!” (Ummm, okay! *smile*)
“And, it makes Everything soft, so you can use it on your skin too! ooOOoo, tropical spa treatment- I’m telling you!!!” she said in her Philadelphia accent, which for some reason made me smile. “At every hang-your-hammock-joint you sleep at, you will be everybody’s best friend!!!” Hmmm, was it her excitement or the promise of baby soft skin and hair? I don’t know, but I was so ready to try it!

We have plenty of hibiscus flowers in my Los Angeles neighbourhoods, and were easily able to gain access to a few! hehe One needs about six or seven large flowers, any colour flower will do, but a warning: red hibiscus flowers could temporarily add a red tint to lighter haircolours!

Tear the flowers up and place in a large bowl or pan of cold water. Let them soak for about twenty minutes. The liquid will change consistency and get thick. It’s actually a rather Lovely sensation.

Strain out the flower pieces and stems and apply to skin and hair. It feels really good! Leave it in your hair for about half an hour, then rinse! It really works! Not just soft hair, but shiny too! YAY, magick flowers! And, thank you to Dear Galaxi, for sharing her magick wherever she goes.

Love and Blessings,
Antonia

I didn’t mean to watch! haha In fact, I was innocently meditating in my backyard, enjoying one of my favourite times of day: that pre-dawn turned light, when the still, crisp night still twinkling with evening porch lights becomes a glowing bustle of activity. It’s that space when the diurnal and nocturnal can meet in-between, as the first rays of the Sun grace the darkened sky, and if lucky, one can glimpse both the Moon’s departure on one side of the sky, and the Sun’s arrival on the other. I was allowing for the cacophony of chirping around me, which came from not only the many birds, but also the fox squirrels. And, they were restless!!! *giggle*

There are quite a few fox squirrels, Sciurus niger, living in my neighbourhood, and I have found them to be quite entertaining. In general, I mean! hehe None-natives to the Southern California area, these tree squirrels were introduced to the Los Angeles area in about 1904. Civil War and Spanish American War veterans residing at the Sawtelle Veteran’s Home on Sepulveda and Wilshire Boulevards brought fox squirrels from their Mississippi Valley homes. I don’t know why, but I can tell you that they have spread from there into the neighbouring counties of Orange and Ventura, and that there are efforts being made to track them.

These agile rodents have an excellent sense of smell, keen eyesight and fair hearing, but are a tad short on attention span. I like their brown to reddish-brown colouring with its yellowish belly; which sets them apart from the more common Western gray or California gray squirrel, Sciurus griseus. I think they are cute, and don’t mind that they eat plentifully from my property, although… I do have an apricot tree which shortly after bearing fruit was picked clean in a single night! I’m Not kidding you! I went out one morning and the tree was empty of fruit! They were organized, I tell ya!! lol

Apparently fox squirrels can co-habitat where food (acorns, nuts, roots, bulbs, seeds, berries, etc.) is plentiful, sharing nests, and assisting each other. I have found them to be very gregarious and playful; chasing each other across the telephone wires, and swinging from tree to tree, chirping away! It’s adorable!

On this particular morning, they were making more than their usual “ki-ki-ki” type of chirping, but also a barking sound for which they are known. That’s barking like a little dog, and it, along with chatters, and high-pitched whines are all used during mating season. I opened my eyes and watched as two squirrels chased each other in a quick, but elaborate circle, centered around a telephone pole, and sweeping around the outstretched branches of tress, and across the top of tall bushes. Back up the telephone pole, this time stopping half-way, my jaw dropped as I watched him mount her. Ummm! Then the chase was on again, round the circle they went. But, they weren’t alone. Oh, no!

Firstly, I watched curiously as another squirrel followed closely behind the couple, awaiting. I was not the only audience member in attendance either. Quite a few squirrels watched from surrounding tree branches, chirping, dancing about. Did I mention this was a Loud affair? The males have been ready for over a month, maturing at 11 months, dancing around the females and forming a hierarchy of who’s getting whom. Usually a second male follows behind the couple, keeping others at bay, and awaiting his turn. That’s not what I witnessed. Granted, with the fox squirrel there is no sexual dimorphism in size or appearance. However, I watched a second female, awaiting her turn, chase the first female away, take her place half-way up the pole, and ummm, the male quickly complied! Wow! Not so monogamous, are they? Nope. They tend to be polygamous, as I saw. But, it seemed to be out in the open and agreed upon!

The females in my neighbourhood should be giving birth in the next couple of weeks. They’re doing it on their own, as the males will have no part in the child-rearing process. I have been pondering if I would prefer to be one of the Winter-born babies, who arrive to an enclosed den in the hollow of a tree, or a Late Summer baby, born in a cup-shaped leaf nest wedged into the crotch of tree branches, high above the ground. They both sound magickal and Lovely in their own way, don’t you think?

My heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky.

I recently made a journey to my BeLoved, Beautiful Northern California for the Holidays. As my bus made its way through the San Francisco/Bay Area, I was Amazed by a Glorious rainbow display, very much like the above picture. WOW! Well, I Love to share Beauty! “Look at the rainbow!” I declared, trying to get any and everyone on the bus to share in the joyous Beauty! People looked!
Hey, yeah, pretty!

The man sitting in front of me turned around and asked me where the gold lay.

I looked out at the rainbow, then back at him.

“I suspect it’s all around us and we just don’t see it,” I replied. And so it is…

Over Mountains

Lakes

Over major cities (Sydney)

Lovely Towns

Farms

And, Oceansides

Walk on a rainbow trail; walk on a trail of song, and all about you will be beauty. There is a way out of every dark mist, over a rainbow trail.

~Navajo Song~

Glorious waterfalls (Iceland)

Also Iceland

Over Lake Superior

In Missouri

Also Missouri

Islay, Scotland

Bare Island, Australia

The true harvest of my life is intangible - a little star dust caught, a portion of the rainbow I have clutched.

~Henry David Thoreau~

These rainbow pics were taken in places dear to me:

Delightful Harlem, the Netherlands

In the Dutch Countryside

Switzerland

In Sonoma County

BeLoved, San Francisco

Over Beautiful San Francisco, taken from a boat

Gorgeous Mendocino Cove

Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray.

~Lord Byron~

Lastly, with Lightening in Arkansas WOW!

We may run, walk, stumble, drive, or fly, but let us never [lose] sight of the reason for the journey, or miss a chance to see a rainbow on the way.

~Gloria Gaither~

Love and Blessings,
Antonia

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