Week 11 - A Rest Stop

The Trip

The energy in the room was filled with expectation, wonder, sadness, curiosity and presence.  How do I know this?

As a group, we were instructed to breath, relax and remain quiet for a moment. An invisible cloud seemed to rise above us and from us. This cloud was was a "pressure system" filled with everything all of us were feeling when we awoke that morning and brought with us to this next to last session.

Our guests for this week's session were Miranda and Lissette from Heaven on Earth Associates. This session was like none other because we had the chance to remove ourselves from the stress and fatigue of everyday life and transfer that energy to a more spiritual connection with our fellow travelers in the program.

Miranda, led us in a brief meditation session and as a result, we were able to clearly vocalize the feelings we had buried that morning.

It was amazing!

Your Guide

Heaven on Earth Associates' mission "to educate & connect people to their rightful self through the healing power of massage therapy/bodywork" became apparent as both Miranda and Lissette told us the stories of their journey, struggles and chance encounters which culminated in the achievement of their dreams as massage therapists and healers.

They asked us to believe in ourselves and to believe that we could do anything if we just visualize it. Visualization is the practice of seeing oneself (drawing a mental picture) in the position or situation that is desired.
The ladies were treated to wonderful chair massages that provided an even more relaxing element to the session.  I think quite a few are now hooked!

Words from Your Fellow Travelers

"I feel so relaxed"
"I should get this done more often"
"I don't usually reveal myself emotionally like this, but I feel glad that I did"

Preparing for The Journey

The Trip
It's so "interesting" how God, The Universe, Fate, or whatever celestial energy you believe in, works.  I'm always amazed at how people and/or opportunities enter my life just when I need them.
Here's an example for yall...
My daughters and I have been getting our hair done at the same salon for over four years.  The salon owner, Jennifer, and I have become good friends during this time and every once in a while she would always mention another friend of hers named Linda who I have never met; which was strange in itself because I have met many of her friends over the years and Linda wasn't one of them. 
I was starting to think that Linda was a figment of Jennifer's imagination...
When I finally did meet Linda, it was totally by chance and that's a crazy thing to say since we eventually did meet at a networking event...IN THE SALON!  No one introduced us.  She was just a random woman who started a conversation with me and whose name didn't click until later on in the day when Jennifer asked me, "Did you meet Linda?"

Needless to say (but I will), timing is everything. A chance meeting is everything. 

When she and I eventually sat down for a good 'ole chat, we discovered that our paths were in parallel.  Linda Street works for Dress for Success Hudson County and is the Program Coordinator for the Going Places Network by Walmart.

This program, funded by a national grant from the Walmart Foundation, is designed to help unemployed and under-employed Dress for Success clients gain professional skills, accelerate their job search and build confidence through weekly training sessions, one-on-one career coaching and networking in a supportive environment.

Linda was thinking it would be nice to have someone sit in and document the program's workshops so that she could post the summaries and outcomes on their website, and guess who was working towards beefing up her blogging activities??? Amazing.  I met Linda almost two weeks before the program was about to begin and this is the preview post written to prepare myself and the reader for our journey.

Your Guide 

• Always tell people you meet, what it is that you do or want to do - I have a good friend who teases me about this.  Every time we hang out and meet new people, I always ask them "What do you do?".  She thinks it's a turn-off for guys, but I don't care.  I'm not trying to find out how much money they make.  I want to know so I can see if there is any way we can help one another...that's all :)
• Always follow-up - even if you can't put your finger on what it is you have in common with someone you meet, make sure you follow-up with a phone call, text, or email.  You never know when you will need to reach out to that person and you want to make sure they remember you.
• Keep your mind and heart open - being positive has never failed me.  I didn't say it was easy, BUT keeping your mind focused on the goals you want to achieve and visualizing yourself doing what you want to do, makes that "dream" a reality...cliche, but true.

The first program group  of 15-20 women will meet every Wednesday 10a-12p April 13 – June 29 at a lovely loft complex in Jersey City, NJ.  Stay tuned for more!