Looking back over 2015

It's amazing how fast this year has gone past. I can't believe we are almost at the end of December 2015.

One of my highlights this year was in August. I was asked to take part in an interview with Faith Canter who is the author of Living a Life  Less Toxic. It was fun, although a little scary to do as I had no idea what she was going to ask me. The link is  here if you want to see it. Another highlight was all the vegetables I was growing in both my garden and greenhouse, although I was a little late in starting the planting this year. Once again I gave quite a few of the plants away. For 2016 I will be starting earlier so hopefully will be able to share even more next year. Vegetables that are home grown taste so much better!

One of the sad things that happened was the death of Dr Wayne Dyer on August 29th 2015. Since then many more people have been talking about him and watching his films and reading his books. It feels as if he is still with us, although in a different way. I was first introduced to him when I listened to The Secrets of The Power Of Intention which woke me up big time.

For some people life moves slowly but for me the year has been racing along. I have loved all the reiki workshops I have facilitated during this time and the feedback I get when people's lives change. I always think it's important to have a chat at 4 weeks with my students as things can change very quickly when you are attuned to reiki. Of course I am there for people anytime they need me but that is the time to see how they have all been getting on.

This year has had some major changes for me but I find that I always have people around me that I can talk things over with. This is important rather than leaving your feelings all bottled up. Sometimes all people need is a listening ear. A few weeks ago I watched a series called The Truth About Cancer. If you want to know how you can help yourself, even if you are undergoing treatment at this time I would highly recommend it.  For some reason I am finding many people are posting about alternative ways to help themselves at this time. The world is waking up to the fact that Pharmaceutical company products are not always the best for us. I have had conversations with a few people recently who are using the spice Turmeric to reduce pain.

My hope is that as we go towards 2016 more people look out for ways to help themselves.  You tube has loads of Meditations on it which are great for people to reduce their stress levels. Watch what you eat and take note of anything that does not sit well with you. I made a major change six months ago to become vegetarian. I have to say I am not missing eating meat at all. This is just the start of my journey. I have also started making Almond milk to replace cows milk but that is a slower journey for me. Of course reiki is fantastic for reducing stress and putting you in a much more positive place too.

More people are also using Sun Ancon Chi machines this year to help with pain and stress. If you want to know more about these you can contact me through my website. This is the original and only medically patented Chi machine so don't get taken in by copies.

To all my Family, Friends and Clients I wish you all a great New Year as we move towards the end of 2015. Even if you did not follow through on last years Resolutions, all you need is 1 day to decide to make a change. It does not matter what that day is.

www.peaceharmonyandjoy.co.uk

Benefits Into Work. Change Is Needed!

 Todays blog is unusual for me but I needed to get it off my chest. Thank you for reading.

It is just over a year ago that the song Caledonia was recorded by The Libations. The aim was to raise money for local Food banks. With all the changes that the UK government is making I believe more people will be in need of help. Yesterday I spoke to someone who had struggled from an illness and was proud to have started a job. She had to work 2 weeks in hand then would get paid 4 weeks later. That meant she would have to wait 6 weeks till she got her salary. She thought she would continue to get help through her benefits until this, happy to pay any of it back when she got paid.

She was totally shocked that she was told her benefits were now stopped. After working 3 weeks she now had no money to pay for her gas, electric, food and housing! How can that be right? Surely the government should be supporting people back into work? I know in certain circumstances the housing can be paid for an extra 4 weeks but this does not help with the other costs. How is she supposed to eat, or cook without energy, even if she did have any food? This is where food banks come in although most can only allow 3 days worth of food a couple of times a year. Although this is a great help it is only temporary. Surely it would be in everyone's interest to keep people supported until they get paid?

 

Often people who have been unemployed for a while have low self esteem and need support. Surely making them worry about the roof over their head or where the next meal is coming from does not help their mental state? I would think that many people get themselves into a cycle of debt by borrowing from others and not paying bills and ultimately find they are more protected back on benefits which is so wrong.

 

It's not often I have a rant but felt I needed to say this today. I am sure that most people reading this are in employment and may not have ever been in this situation. Can I ask you to try putting yourself in their place? If you want to help make a contribution to the Food banks. You can download Caledonia from here.  The person I spoke to yesterday was currently staying with a friend as she had no electricity or gas. When she gets her salary she will be paying back all the debt that has built up on her meters as well as her friend for supplying her with food. This will immediately start her in a debit situation. Would it not be better to have a fresh start with wages going forwards and have everyday costs until the first wage met by the benefit system to make sure people stay in work? Of course it would cost more initially but long term would be much better for both the country and the individuals concerned.

While I'm on the subject, the government also needs to turn around decisions faster too. Many people who have a change in their benefits can be left waiting for weeks without an income! This can be as simple a change as a partner leaving and having to change from a joint to single claim.

My thanks go out to all the volunteers who work in the Food banks all over the country and to The Libations who recorded Caledonia. You can help make this positive by becoming aware of the struggles people go through in changing their situations and help in any way that you can. If you have a local Food bank you can donate goods that they can hand out. I am sure both they and their clients will be most grateful. It is such a pity that in 2015 we have to make use of things like this but people CAN be a voice of change.

Change Your Mindset, Enjoy Your Life

In my daytime job I speak to people with all sorts of vulnerabilities. This could be an elderly person that has not spoken to anyone for a few days or someone terminally ill. Often those that are in a really bad place health wise are those with the light shining from them. One phrase I often hear is " There is always someone worse than me". People can be so resilient even when in chronic pain. The opposite are those that believe everyone is against them and only think of what they cannot do. It shows time and again that mindset has a big part to play in how we live our lives.



I remember many years ago reading the Celestine prophecy thanks to my friend Lorraine who advised me she was bringing this book when she visited me in the summer. A couple of weeks later a parcel dropped through my letter box with the words to read it as it couldn't wait till summer! I could not put it down and have now read all the sequels. The main thing that comes out of the book is we are all one of 4 groups of people.They are intimidator, poor me, aloof and aggressor. At that time I found I was a poor me. Everything was going wrong and I felt like a victum. This book was a wake up call for me. Once I saw how my mind was working I took notice and tried to correct my thinking to be more positive. This became easier to do as time went by and reiki helped me immensly too.

It is all about Mindset. If you live in the darkness you will only see this. If you start by having a chink of light in your life then you will find this expands. Every day I look for something I am grateful for in my life. When you think this way more things throughout the day come into your mind that you are happy about.  Many of the people I talk to will have a laugh when we chat  as they know they cannot change the situation but it does not stop them enjoying life.

There will always be others such as a deceased relation of mine that for the last few years of her life, everytime we visited, the words from her were always "Why am I still here? I don't want to be  here." This was such a shame as she could have had so much to enjoy with what was in her life at that time. It also made it depressing for anyone visiting her. You can't change everybody but you can at least try by giving them things to look forward to.

Recently I saw a video of elderly people being taught how to use computers. (Video)They each had a young person that helped them set everything up and who eventually connected all the elderly to each other in a chat room. These were people who had met at a daycare centre and now could connect from their own homes. I thought the video was awesome and the people involved thought so too. To see their faces as they chatted to their friends was so good. This was brought home to me by chatting to a 95 year old man who used his computer daily yet I can speak to people from 50 years onwards who think they are too stupid to learn. One 84 year old was bought a laptop by her daughter who also paid for a training course with Apple to make sure she knew how to use it.  Already she was able to look up information on line and was proud to have an email address! I have also seen on the web that AgeUK  run computer courses as well. You are never too old to learn or change your mindset! Be positive and look for the good in each day.

Joy Fraser
Usui Reiki Master / Teacher
Peace Harmony and Joy
Facebook

Changing For A Better Life

Following on from my last blog "You are what you eat" I am  pleased to say that I have watched the film Fork over Knives and have bought the book to read. The biggest change so far is I decided to remove all meat from my diet. For over 20 years I have not eaten beef and rarely eaten pork so my diet was made up of mainly Chicken and turkey when I wanted meat. I realised recently that most of my  diet was made from vegetables and pasta and I was not enjoying the meat  most of the time I was eating it so it was time for change.

For all of us there comes a time when we need to make changes in our lives. It may be to do with relationships, work or health. The wrong thing is to sit and wish things were different, instead we have to take action. I have also at the same time joined a club with swimming pool and gym. For now I am starting on the swimming due to the current weakness of my back but hopefully will progress to the gym as well. I have also made a commitment to increase my income by joining with a company that will enable me to do this so I'm tackling a few things together. Check it out here. You only need to do one thing to start changing something in your life. What will it be?


I also this week went to the launch of a book called Living Life Less Toxic written by Faith  Canter and got to taste lots of yummy raw cakes. Check out her book at Amazon. It's full of very useful information to help with your health. Faith had M.E and through changing so much in her life she recently ran 26 Miles! What a change in her health!

I had a lovely call this week from an Acupuncturist who was ordering a Sun Ancon Chi machine from me to help both family and her clients. I know her clients will love it as do mine. This weekend I have a Reiki level one workshop on so will have a part in helping those learning reiki as it usually changes lives in at least one  way. All my charity work is coming to fruition over the next few weeks as I have people coming to learn reiki that were given as gifts to charities. It's great to give back and the more people that learn reiki, the better!

There is so much happening around me at this time that's it's great that I have my 2 young dogs that keep me grounded. Pets are great to be around for all the cuddles you get as well as the exercise too. In between all this I am making time for growing my own vegetables. This will help not only in saving me money but helping me eat organically as well. This year I am more aware of things to make with all the extra vegetables but I will continue to pay if forward by giving some away as well.

If  any of you have done a Pay it Forward  you may want to check out my facebook page for a way to both spread the word that PIF is good and perhaps win a gift from me.

I leave you with this wonderful quote :-

“Sail beyond the horizon; fly higher than you ever thought possible; magnify your existence by helping others; be kind to people and animals of all shapes and sizes; be true to what you value most; shine your light on the world; and be the person you were born to be.” Blake Beattie


Joy Fraser
Usui Reiki Master / Teacher
www.peaceharmonyandjoy.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/peaceharmonyandjoy

You Are What You Eat

I just have to tell you about the last lady I spoke to at work today. She would like more people to know about what she is doing.

She is 71 although sounded under 40 and she has womb cancer. The important thing is it has almost gone instead of spreading and killing her within 3 months which the doctor said always happens. The problem with this  type of cancer is it does not bother you so often goes undiagnosed.

A friend of hers said she was not looking good a  year ago and got her started on juicing. In her words her arthritis and pains went and she started to look more youthful. She also dropped from 13 stone to 10. Her daughter at first thought this was wrong but has now joined her after seeing the difference in her mum.

She then had a touch of sciatica and went to see the doctor and was shocked to find herself diagnosed with the cancer. They told her it was very aggressive and would spread like wildfire and wanted to do chemotherapy. Spurred on by the difference juicing had made to her she decided instead to use food to treat her illness. She cut out all meat and dairy products and increased the juicing as well as eating lots of organic vegetables. She then went vegan and is now about to go into raw food as well. She has also cut out the use of all chemicals in the house and her hair.

We are now a few months down the line and she was sent for a scan. She was told that they could see where the cancer had previously spread to on the scan but it had now shrunk back to where it started and that was shrinking too! The doctor was amazed as he expected to find her riddled with the cancer as that is what usually happens.

We spoke about what type of juices she used and mentioned Jason Vale (The juice master) as well, as she has used his books as a starting point. I told her how wonderful it was to speak to someone fighting back (especially at her age) without using the chemotherapy that everyone expects us to.

So on behalf of this wonderful lady, who advised me she is a fighter, it truly shows that what you eat can make a big difference to your health.She also recommended going to You tube and checking out Fork over Knives which I will do.

Gratitude In The Moment

Do you ever feel you are running on empty and need to recharge your batteries? It could be you are a busy Mum or Dad, or a Business person but we are really all just the same. It is so easy to get caught up in all we want to do that we never stop to just be in the moment. The word "Want" is interesting though as it does not mean "Need". We can all wish for something that we would like to have but it may not be important, whereas things we need are. Are you chasing your tail because you want something or need it?

We all need to take time out for ourselves. One of the things we can make time for is to slow down and become aware of all that we are grateful for. This may start out as just a few minutes a day. This does two things for you. When you take it on board that there are good things in your life you will become more contented. Your mind is also an interesting piece of equipment. Your thoughts are energy, so whatever you are thinking about goes out there into the Universe. Imagine if you are thinking "I'm stressed, broke, unhappy, angry, sick", and that's all you think about? You are never going to feel better about yourself, and you will keep having the same Mindset as these thoughts will keep coming back to you.

Instead, when you think about all the things you are grateful for, you are filled with happy thoughts. Surprise, surprise, this then makes you happier! The more you are happy for just a few minutes at a time you will find this grows. You may be out walking thinking of things and have a smile on your face. A person may react  to your smile with one of his own and this makes you feel good too. The way you are will always impact on those around you. I make it my mission each day a few times to think of something to make me smile. Having two wonderful dogs around me makes this so easy!

You will find that those that are more contented and less stressed around you are people that take time to appreciate themselves. When you learn to live " In the moment", life really does become easier. While you are doing something, try not to think of all the other things you have to do, just concentrate on the task in hand. Just as important though is to remember that you are a person in your own right and you must take time for you! You may be a mother, teacher, doctor or anything else but you matter, and by taking care of yourself this then enables you to do all the others things that you need to action.

I leave you with my grateful thoughts for today. I was checking my website today and was really thankful for all those that have taken the time to give me testimonials for my therapies and teaching. I can feel myself smiling as I think about it.


 It also looks like my daughter will be getting out of hospital after 3 weeks so her family will be so grateful to have Mum and Wife back home again.


Here is your challenge today.........

                          WHAT ARE YOU GRATEFUL FOR?




Joy Fraser
Usui reiki master / teacher
www.peaceharmonyandjoy.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/peaceharmonyandjoy

Let The Light Through.

The world can easily feel like a dark place with all that's going on in it. Although I have not watched or listened to the news or read newspapers for a couple of years, I still get bombarded with it through social media.When we see and hear things like murders, accidents and generally anything that does not put a smile on our faces it can pull us down and we can get lost in thinking the world is a bad place to be. This is not really true but the media puts the fear into us. You may notice they are not so good at promoting all the great things that happen. I see things every day from  children- yes children- inventing brilliant medical advances and ways to help the third world. It's always best to try and concentrate more on the good things in life rather than the bad as you will have a happier life. It's okay though to have off days too as we are human after all.

Of course you can feel down in others ways too. This may be due to  health or other factors. This week I shocked myself with how upset and frustrated I found myself at a situation, which is not like me. The answer to calm myself down was to come home, have a cuddle from my dogs then go and sit down for an hour, while I gave myself reiki. After this I finally felt able to relax after a very stressful day. We all have to find our own coping mechanisms for when we get stressed. Holding it too close to us is what can make you unwell. Have a think about what you do to remove stress from your life.

I got out of bed the next day and decided that although the situation was ongoing I was not going to let it affect me the same way. In fact I posted this picture on my Facebook page.

I walked my dogs in the morning and realised it was light. When did that happen I thought to myself. Isn't it funny how you can be around something without even noticing it? I also realised when I came home that evening that it was light too. When you both leave for work and return in darkness the days always seem so short so it is good to see it again from the other side. This also helps people who are depressed or have SAD ( Seasonal  Affective Disorder). During the Winter I see more depressed people coming for reiki than throughout the rest of the year. I came home and the first thing I thought of was walking the dogs and enjoying the daylight. I then started to plan my exercise program as it's not much fun to walk in the dark. Maybe the universe did not want me moving so fast as that day I also put my foot in a pothole in a car park and twisted my ankle but I will get there.

I find it also depends on who you have in your circle what type of mood you can be in. If you are with someone who is in a bad mood or feeling sorry for themselves it can lower your vibrations if you allow this to happen. Yes we can all be down at some time but  hopefully with the right people around you it will not be for long. In fact this week when I had my hiccup, someone who I taught about Positive thinking was the one that nudged me in the right direction. That was good for me seeing how much she had grown!

The light days show that spring is here so I'm now looking forward to all the things I can do with the extended sunlight. Isn't it interesting that it feels like there are more hours in the day when it's light? It's really just the same 24 hours in a day but it is how we use them that make us feel more content. I'm sending you all Love and Light and hope you too are making plans to help you enjoy life more.



Joy Fraser
UK Reiki Federation Master / Teacher
Edinburgh
Scotland
www.peaceharmonyandjoy.co.uk

Every day is a gift.

Do you ever wake up and just be thankful that you can see, hear and smell?  It's something a lot of us take for granted but all are not as fortunate as us.

Today I went into the garden with my dogs and saw a tiny bunch of snowdrops which have just opened. It is so easy to complain about the cold and the rain but here is a sign that spring is on its way. I then looked around the rest of the garden and could just see some daffodils peaking through the soil. Considering last week all I saw was brick hard ground it shows that things are always growing under the surface.

How about you? Are there  things you are studying- perhaps meditation - that you are struggling with? Does it sometimes feel as if you are fighting against a brick wall? Everyone can learn but it has to be at your own pace. I often tell students that struggle to just slow down when they are on a walk and be mindful of what they are passing in the streets and gardens. This is also a form of Meditation. If you can do this you are on your way. Listen to the sound of birds as you are walking. I love trying to work out what I am hearing. When you concentrate like this you block out all the other sounds around you. You may feel like the plants that are underground trying to push through but they always aim for the light and you should know that there is always light at the end of the tunnel in whatever you do. If you find it easier to meditate with others then look out for the groups around you.

Like the flowers we should all continue to grow in whatever we set out to do. It may be something you do on your own or with others. Give yourself some goals to reach so that you get there in small stages. It's much easier than looking at a big hurdle to get over. Use your ears and listen to any advice you are given. You do not need to take it but hearing another person's take on a problem often helps you find an answer to whatever the problem is.The most important thing is not to give up. It may take you longer to get to your destination but you will get there in your own time.


Most of all make sure you have time for whatever you are learning as this is time for you also to grow. I recently had a student that did not have time to practice reiki. She made a conscious decision to reorganise her life so she did have time for it. When you have a gift, you should use it. You cannot learn without making time for yourself. Treat everyday as a gift and enjoy it.

Everyday is a Gift, that's why they call it the Present. 

 

Joy Fraser

Usui Reiki Master / Teacher

Edinburgh, Scotland

www.peaceharmonyandjoy.co.uk

Laughter is the best medicine.

Do you ever have one of those days that don't go the way you expect?  I was hoping for a long lie in bed today but instead the three dogs I have in my house this weekend woke me up at 6am. One of them belongs to a friend. After letting them out in the garden I did manage to go back to bed till 8am so all was not lost.

The day started to go downhill when I went to make breakfast. I put some Hash Browns in the oven and cooked some eggs to go with them. When they were ready I took them out of the oven with a towel and then without thinking went to grab the tray with my bare hand. As you can guess I burned myself as the tray and Hash Browns went all over the floor. Don't worry, Calendula  cream and running my hand under cold water very quickly did the trick. I sat down and ate my lonesome eggs after cleaning the floor. I then realised I had left my coffee in the kitchen so went to collect it. After taking a mouthful I realised it was cold. I had forgotten to switch on the kettle.  Duh!

I then decided it was time to take all the dogs out for a walk and play but before that the bath needed rinsed after my shower. I'm sure you can guess what I did next. I turned the shower on me instead of the bath. After going and getting dry clothes to replace my soaking wet ones all I could do was laugh at myself. I  promise you I'm not going senile, even if it sounds like it. I obviously had not wakened up properly. At least that's my reasoning. I thought I would give you all a laugh as it does us all good to laugh at ourselves sometimes.

My day has got back on target after walking the dogs and letting them play. I even managed to get my friends dog to come back to me eventually. Mind you it may go downhill again when I try to wash her if I can pluck up the courage. My 2 are happy getting washed and brushed but this little beauty hates both so I may end up getting scratched. Of course I could just give her back to my friend tonight as she is as I know she will get just as mucky tomorrow too.

I hope you are all having a better start to the day than I did. Out of it though I have given myself such a laugh so I  must have produced loads of feel good Endorphins. Just a thought - maybe I should star in a remake of Fawlty Towers!

Feel free to give me company and tell me what funny things you have done and if you managed to laugh at yourself.















Joy Fraser
Usui Reiki Master / Teacher

Peace Harmony and Joy Edinburgh