#98

It was hotter than blazes up in the north country over the weekend. Whew. I hope y'all are keeping your cool -- drinking your water and breathing.

I have news about my Intention Cards. I am selling them for what they cost me to produce plus shipping, which equals $14.00 You can see a picture of them and purchase them on my Web site: http://www.savvypsychic.com/intentioncards.html

In fact, here's a good deal. If you get a reading from me during July or August, I'll give you a set of my Intention Cards. Free. You can see information about my fees and about scheduling a reading on my Web site: http://www.savvypsychic.com/get-a-reading.html

If you've ever had a reading from me, please remember that I appreciate referrals. Thanks.

#97

"Like Confucius of old, I am absorbed in the wonder of earth, and the life upon it, and I cannot think of heaven and the angels. I have enough for this life. If there is no other life, then this one has been enough to make it worth being born, myself, a human being. With so profound a faith in the human heart and its power to grow toward the light, I find here reason and cause enough for hope and confidence in the future of mankind."

~ Pearl S. Buck, as quoted in The Writer's Almanac

By the way, I posted two new pages on the "Where is Jett?" page of my Web site. Go to Where is Jett, scroll down to the bottom of the page, and see '11 Spring and '11 Summer.

#96

Regarding last week's Tenacity Notes, a reader sent me "a quote from some old Chinese guy." She said she has it taped to her computer at work:

"Don't worry about the occurrence of thoughts, only beware of being slow to notice it happening. The occurrence of thoughts is sickness; not continuing thoughts is medicine."

Radical.

#95

Habitual patterns of thinking/acting can damage the brain.

Changing those patterns can heal it.

#94

Some readers replied about falling asleep:

* A few years ago I began to channel love into my body as I'm falling asleep. I envision each cell getting what it needs as I breath in and feeling really satisfied and happy as I breath out. Usually, before I get done going through all my body parts, I'm asleep.

* As for dreams, write them down. As soon as you wake up, whatever you remember, even an image or word. My first entry was "red ball, bouncing." The more you write, the more you'll start remembering. A dream journal is a fascinating journey, well worth the effort.

* As always thank you for your notes! On more than one occasion they have found me confused and assisted me in finding the path out of the fog!

If you appreciate Tenacity Notes too, please pass them on and please encourage others to subscribe.

By the way, did you know that you can read all the Tenacity Notes on the Tenacity Notes Blog? You can, and here's the address: http://tenacitynotes.com/

#93

What do you think about as you fall asleep? Or do you think? Maybe you count sheep. Maybe you fall asleep the second your head hits the pillow. Maybe you listen to music.

Me, I have tended to ruminate about things that bother me and that I can do little about -- anti-gay hate speech in the MInnesota legislature, a restaurant owner who openly takes his workers' tips, stuff like that.

Then one night I decided it was foolish to ruminate on such things, especially while I'm falling asleep. I decided I would rather fall asleep thinking about things I appreciate. "Count your blessings instead of sheep." Besides, there happens to be a great cause for appreciation lying right next to me.

I rarely remember dreams, but the first night of appreciation I had many dreams that I remembered. And so it has continued. When I fall asleep within the energy of appreciation, I remember my dreams. When I slip and return to negative ruminating, I have no sense of having dreamed.

The other thing I notice is that I fall asleep fast when I am appreciating. But I can lie there for a long time before I sleep when I'm ruminating about troublesome things.

What energy do you fall asleep in?

P.S.
Spring in the north country is a beautiful green thing. I'm glad to be in Duluth!

#92

A reader writes this about wonder. I call it Love Invites Wonder.

I took a couple extra days off this week, and each day I walked around Lake Nokomis.
I love that lake.

Well, the first day, I saw 2 orioles. What breathtakingly beautiful birds, and their song is also striking. The orioles put me in a field of wonderment.

The next day, hoping I would see them again, I went back to the lake. Not only did I see orioles (more this day), but two foxes close by the Lake.
I have never seen a fox in real life before.
Wonder.

The third day I went back, no foxes, no orioles, what, I wondered, can I be in awe about?
Then I began to just look around. But truly look. And all of a sudden the trees became so alive and it felt like the bark was made of layers and layers of dimensions.

Words can not express it.

#91

One week, while I was still in Texas, I decided that I would practice wonder. I enjoyed wonder; it made for a delightful week.

Then I saw a Luna Moth. Oh the wonder! That moth was the most exquisitely beautiful thing I have ever seen.

Did my practice of wonder have something to do with me seeing that moth? I mean, was my practice of wonder somehow involved with that moth landing where it did? With it staying there the entire day? With me taking a walk in that direction? With that woman calling me over to see it? Was that perfect convergence of events a benefit of my practicing wonder?

#90

Practice something today.

Pick one thing, one thing you don't usually practice, and practice it every day this week.

Here are some items from my list of things to practice: wonder, appreciation, smile (especially when no one else is around), awe, emanate love.

#89

Are you taking 15 minutes every day to do intentional breathing? I know I've neglected the Breath and Water Club, but I hope you haven't neglected your breath and water practice. It makes a difference. It makes a difference in your day, and it makes a difference in your life. You know it does.

If you've drifted away, return. 15 minutes of intentional breathing twice a day. 15 minutes of appreciating your breath, enjoying your breath, loving your breath. And 8 glasses of water every day.

Write to me please. Tell me how you're doing with your Breath and Water practice.

#88

A reader writes:

I wrote a letter of apology to someone against whom I have harbored resentment for many, many years. This person, my father, has been dead since I was a young woman.

At first it was ludicrous -- me apologizing to him?!? It should be the other way around! But I did it, I apologized to him for harboring resentment towards him. Jett, it was like magic. It freed me! All this time I'd thought that his evil deeds against me had damaged me and crippled me forever, that I would never get out from under what he did. Working on that letter (and it took several drafts) I realized that while his evil deeds may have damaged me initially, it was my resentment that kept me crippled. Wow, what an insight! My resentment kept me tied to him! What a revelation! I looked at it every which way, and I had to admit it was true. I had crippled myself with my resentment.

Then I had to write a letter of apology to myself. I had to acknowledge that I had kept myself crippled, even as I blamed him. I apologized to myself for crippling myself with resentment. Then I wrote another letter to my father, apologizing for blaming him for something that I had done to myself.

Don't get me wrong, I don't all of sudden think that my father was a saint. He was an evil man. But I can let that go now. At 55, I can finally let that go and be free. That was then and this is now. And now I am free. I can't tell you how good it feels!! Magic letters of apology!!! Thank you for this wonderful teaching!

Duluth
I am in Duluth. Actually, I'm about 10 miles north of Duluth on Hwy. 53. I expect to be here all summer. If you want a reading in person, let me know. I suggest that you schedule your reading sooner rather than later -- even though I expect to be here all summer, I'm here because of my spouse's job, which always means that things can change at a moment's notice. Call me or email me to schedule your reading.

#87

I am finding many benefits from reviewing the previous days (and decades) as I write my letter of apology in the morning.

Here's one: As I clean up the past, I become aware in the present. I am aware, in the moment, of interactions that I am about to leave unresolved.

For example, in the midst of a conversation, I become aware that my words and my energy do not match. Perhaps I am speaking gracious words, but feeling judgmental of the person I'm speaking to. My awareness gives me the opportunity to change my energy to match my words.

#86

I was reading a novel, and a sentence caught my attention.

"If one followed the well-ordered life, one would start each day with the writing of one's letters of apology."

If there is the need for an apology, it shows that there exists an experience that is unresolved. Any experience of mine that is unresolved holds a bit of my energy. No matter how long ago the experience happened, when a situation is unresolved, some energetic piece of me remains there.

I don't want pieces of me hanging out elsewhere and elsewhen. I want all of my energy present and available to me now. So it behooves me to resolve those unresolved situations. Starting my day by writing my letters of apology is one way to achieve resolution.

So I'm going to give it a try. I'll begin each day this week by writing a letter of apology. I'm interested to see where it will take me.

Are you game? Will you join me?

#85

A reader replied to last week's Notes:

"Years ago, at the depths of winter depression, I knew I had to do something drastic to rescue myself. I took a day off work (something I only do when I'm sick) and dubbed it "New Day." I made sure that everything I did was a departure from normal. In addition to altering the little rituals you mentioned and wearing clothes from the back of the closet, I took myself out for breakfast, whIch I never do, to a place I'd always wanted to go but never been, using none of my usual routes. I bought a county map, closed my eyes and pointed to an area, then went there. I visited Walbo, Dalbo and Day. Met strangers. Asked questions. Stopped along the road to explore. Lived new life. It was a wonderful antidote, and the lessons stuck with me. I highly recommend it."

We are en route. Debra's job wants her in Duluth by the 11th, so that's what we're striving for.

#84

There's something to be said for noticing our automatic behaviors, our automatic responses, our automatic assumptions. Noticing them and, instead of following what's automatic, making a choice.

Today, do something differently.

Do you always take the same route to work? Alter it.
Do you always brush your teeth with your right hand? Use your left.
Do you always have oatmeal at 6:30? Have an egg at 6:20.

Doing one thing differently may lead you to notice other automatic things you do; things you automatically think or believe, assumptions about yourself and others that you automatically make.

This week, do some things differently. See where it leads you.

#83

Someone asked, "How do I practice appreciation? Do I make a list of the things I'm thankful for?"

To me, there is a difference between appreciation and thankfulness. Appreciation is an experience; thankfulness is a thought.

P.S. Next week my 8-year-old grandson will be staying with us. I may forget to send a Tenacity Notes!

#82

"Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards."
~ Soren Kierkegaard

#81

Some of you wrote after last week: "I want wonder in my life now, I want to exist in a state of love now. I don't want to wait until I die."

Practice appreciation and you will know wonder. Emanate love, and you will exist in love.

Practice assiduously. A spiritual practice is like any other practice, the more you do it, the better you get.

Practice every day. Tape a note to your computer. Set the alarm clock on your phone. Tie a string around your finger!! Do something to remind yourself to practice appreciation and to emanate love. Practice every day, for a least a little part of the day.

Give yourself this opportunity: Practice appreciation every day from now until May Day. Emanate love every day from now until May Day. Then write to me and tell me how you're doing.

It occurs to me that May Day is International Workers Day. I don't know about you, but I can get a bit freaked out by these attempts to bust unions and by all the talk about dismantling medicare and social security. Practicing appreciation and emanating love are excellent antidotes to fear and anxiety. Let me know how it goes.

#97

"Like Confucius of old, I am absorbed in the wonder of earth, and the life upon it, and I cannot think of heaven and the angels. I have enough for this life. If there is no other life, then this one has been enough to make it worth being born, myself, a human being. With so profound a faith in the human heart and its power to grow toward the light, I find here reason and cause enough for hope and confidence in the future of mankind."

~ Pearl S. Buck, as quoted in The Writer's Almanac

By the way, I posted two new pages on the "Where is Jett?" page of my Web site. Go to Where is Jett, scroll down to the bottom of the page, and see '11 Spring and '11 Summer.

#80

Over the years, I've done a lot of psychic interacting, during readings, with people (and animals) who have died. Some had experienced deaths that were long and protracted, some sudden. Some deaths were peaceful, some violent. But always, once death has happened, I see beings in a state of wonder.

Certainly every soul is learning/doing different things after death, but those different things are all informed by wonder -- wonder and awe within a state of love.

Why do we fear death?

#79

You ask: What do I mean by resistance? What do I mean by defendedness?

I mean any thought, action, belief, response, idea, attitude, intent, personality trait, behavior, habit, expectation, perspective, etc. that you use in order to feel safe; in order to feel not vulnerable; in order to hide.

Examples? Pretty much anything. You can be nice, and it can be a protection. You can be nice and it can be heart-felt. It isn't so much the actual behavior or attitude, it's the purpose for the behavior or attitude that merits your attention. Vulnerability is your birthright; allow.

#78

Release resistance.
Allow.

Release defendedness.
Choose appreciation.

Eschew fear.
Love.

#77

You are your soul's path.

#76

I am quite taken with the notion from last week that prosperity does not come from outside ourselves, but rather from ourselves; as last week's reader said, from our heart center. Worth pondering.

Speaking of prosperity, and concerning our discussion of resistance and allowing, here's what one reader has to say:

"Right before Christmas, I realized it's harder for me to receive than to give. I said to myself, 'This Christmas I will open up and receive, as well as give.' (Jett says, Hmmmm, moving from resistance to allowing.)

Amazing things happened, including an unexpected $3,000 in my paycheck, which I just found out is now a permanent part of my salary!

Then I was contacted by a dear friend who had lived with our family 31 years ago. We had lost touch for decades, but I never forgot her. I recently joined Facebook, which is how she found me. She phoned, and we talked as if no time had passed!

She is now a millionaire, and she wants to fly my family, seven of us, to her home near Washington, D.C. to stay for two weeks and see the sights -- her treat. She said, 'You shared your home with me and now I want to do the same for you.'

After these things happened, I recalled my pre-Christmas intention."

Hmmmm indeed.

This is my last week in Guanajuato. I remain enchanted, and I'm already planning to return next year.

#75

I had an interesting conversation with a reader. She said that she enjoys using the Intention Cards, and that she picks one at random every morning. She has found the cards to be apt and enlightening.

Then she said this: Looking at the Prosperity Card, after I'd picked it for the third time, I noticed that the energy was moving from the center outward. Funny, but I'd always thought of prosperity as something that would come to me from the outside in. I am intrigued with the idea that prosperity is not outside of me. I am connecting with the feeling of prosperity in my heart center.

If prosperity dwells within, is it resistance that blocks it? If we resist less and allow more, will prosperity be the result?

I said, isn't it interesting that, having ended up with the Prosperity Cards three times, you have now come to a more profound understanding of prosperity? It's true, the Intention Cards work -- they help to bring about the change you want. They are imbued with the energy of joyful fulfillment.

By the way, I put a few photos of Guanajuato up on my web site. I remain enchanted with the place. You can find them on the Where Is Jett? page. You can also see and purchase Intention Cards on my Web site. And remember, if you don't like to use PayPal, you needn't. Just let me know and we'll use a different form of payment.

#74

In response to last week's Tenacity Notes, about resistance and allowing, a reader wrote:

"The world and all its kingdoms are being challenged to open up and receive." The world and all its kingdoms, which includes me (and you).

Actually, she wrote much more, which I will share with you next week.

I am delighted to be living in Guanajuato, Mexico. I am enchanted. I'm even learning a little Spanish, although I understand far less than I hear, and I speak far less than I understand. I'll be here until January 29.

#73

A happy and fulfilling 2011 to you.

For the rest of January I'll be in Guanajuato, Mexico. I'll be studying Spanish at a language school there, and I'll be living with a local family. I am quite excited.

I imagine my brain cells will be quivering after being immersed in a language and a culture I do not know. Wow. I'll write some kind of Tenacity Notes from Guanajuato, but with a quivering brain, who knows what I'll have to say? Maybe just Hola Amigos! (amigos y amigas? ya'll?)

In the meantime, I'm thinking about resistance. I'm thinking about resistance (to life, to me, to my own potential, to being open and vulnerable) and how it shows up in my body. I'm thinking about resistance and the opposite of resistance -- allowing. Allowing life. Allowing others to be who they are. Allowing me to be who I am. Allowing the unknown. I'm thinking about allowing, and how allowing shows up in my body.