My Memoir I’m Fine Just the Way I Am – Now Available as E-Book!

Posted by Barbara Techel

I want to first take a moment to thank those who hung in there and ordered a paperback copy of my new memoir even though the shipping time was longer than usual or perhaps you are still waiting for your copy to arrive. Thank you, thank you, and thanks so much for your patience! 

I’m happy to share that my memoir is now also available as an e-book through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords.

A recent review…thank you, Cynthia!

This is a courageous story of a woman’s deepening into her soul’s truth. While it’s very specific, it’s also a universal story. How do we find the courage to be our true selves? How do we love another without sacrificing our well-being? How do we find our way from our spiritual center and not from the ego?

Barb tells the story of her dog, Gidget, and the tough decisions she had to make in their life together. She pulls on resources she knew were available and discovered new support systems.

An easy to read, inspiring story that gives a sense of what’s possible when we connect with what’s true within us.

~Cynthia Morris, Writer’s Coach and author of The Busy Woman’s Guide to Writing a World-Changing Book

Thank you again for your support of my writing and work. It means so much!

xo,

Barbara

Wisdom from Elephant and Connecting Past, Present, and Future

Posted by Barbara Techel
 
Photo: Unsplash @tobiasadam
 
Animal oracle wisdom from Elephant for your week and for the month of May. I hope you enjoy! <3 ????
 
The elephant a symbol of strength and I also always think of the word ancient when I think of them. They are such a steady and grounding animal to guide us as we continue to find our way through these times that can sometimes feel unsteady, but also grounding as our world continues to learn to slow down and move with more careful, considerate, and conscientious steps.
 
I’m thinking about how on my morning walks the past few weekends how I’m often hearing these words float through my mind sung by The Carpenters, “There’s a kind of hush all over the world tonight.”
 
With fewer cars on the road and more kids playing outside it has just felt like to me like a soft blanket that has fallen ever so gently and lightly over our town. It reminds me of my own childhood days and how things didn’t feel rushed and time wasn’t a concern.
 
And it reminds me of Elephant and though such a large creature it walks with such a hushed grace. Elephants also associated with being loyal to family is also a beautiful mirror for us right now too as we are spending more time with those closest to us and perhaps discovering new ways in which to be together that beckons us back to what felt like simpler times.
 
The words on the card ‘learn from the past’ seems to tie nicely into this message too. What did we do right in the past – what can we learn from that could have been better – and then how can we bring that together into the present? Those questions run through my mind as Elephant walks gently beside us this month as a powerful and graceful guide.
 
xo,
Barbara
 
Card from: The Spirit Animal Oracle by Colette Baron-Reid

Almost One Year Later – A Gift in My Garden From Gidget

Posted by Barbara Techel

May 11th will mark the one year anniversary since Gidget has been gone. It was the day before Mother’s Day when we had to say goodbye to her. I still remember clearly right before she passed and the message she gave me from the lyrics of a song by Terry Jacks, “We had joy, we had fun,  we had seasons in the sun.”

As the day of her passing grows closer I’ve been thinking about her often. Today I was planting lavender in one of my garden beds thinking about how she loved to lie in the sun near me when I was in my gardens. As I dug a hole in the dirt to place the new plant, I came across some rocks and within them, a tiny heart-shaped rock.

My heart burst with joy and I smiled. I knew it was Gidget letting me know all is well. You may recall after we laid her to rest in an area of the garden next to writing cottage that I placed rocks in the shape of a heart as a tribute to her. Just as I’d placed the last stone, I noticed a small stone off to the side shaped like a heart, which I placed within the large heart symbolizing our hearts will always be connected. 

So what a gift this was to receive another heart-shaped stone as I was thinking of her!

Looking up the symbolism of the Lavender flower I came across this that resonated for me: 

Lavender flowers are purple in color and the color purple is associated with the crown chakra, which is the energy center associated with higher purpose and spiritual connectivity. The crown or 7th chakra is located at the top of the head and the vibration of the crown is the highest vibration in the physical body. This symbolism is appropriate as the Lavender flower is often used for healing and raising our vibration to the highest level possible is the easiest path to healing.

Gidget, as many of you know, I called my Buddha Dog – My Master Teacher and Healer – because she helped me heal a long-held secret from my childhood. How fitting it is that I was thinking of her planting the Lavender and she sent me the heart stone. When we believe in our own higher self connected with the Divine, well, magical and beautiful things happen that confirm for us that truth.

xo,

Barbara