Creating Worlds with homeschooling...

So, it’s crossed my mind that maybe people are wondering why I’ve talked so much about the journey my daughter and I have taken with the homeschool curriculum, Oak Meadow.

Why, right? When my work is focused on Spiritually Aware Parenting and really my blog should be reflecting mindfulness and spiritual alignment for parents and kids?
Well, you probably know that there’s nothing more exciting, or exhilarating than when you find something that helps support your child: especially when its something that deals with a challenge that has always been there.
Oak Meadow came at a time when I was noticing my younger daughter was struggling with not only her schoolwork, but her sense of herself, her confidence, how she learnt and how she absorbed information.
As I’ve told you in past blogs, Oak Meadow has given her the tools and awareness to delve into topics from a self aware perspective. She not only completes the projects and sets her own schedules and routines, which builds her sense of Who She is  even more, but she’s also learning and reading about so many different elements of life that we never would have been able to explore before.

This winter Gia went into the Oak Meadow Grade 8. She wanted to mix things up, and since she was so eager to dive into the English Section, she chose to focus one topic at a time, rather than scattering them through the week.
I can’t blame her for wanting to work through the English. This time, Oak Meadow exceeded even themselves.

The grade 7 English worked hand in hand with the World History section. But this time, English takes a front seat and becomes a core unit all by itself.
This is produced seamlessly through 4 elements. The course book, which breaks down all of your projects and lesson focuses, as well as how to use the rest of the supporting material.
The works of fiction, which exemplify the lesson.
From  some sci-fi works such as A Wrinkle in Time, The Giver and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, to classics such as The Hobbit and Tom Sawyer, I truly felt I could relax knowing Gia was getting a strong foundation in some important pieces of literature.
The other elements were for writing itself, and she was instructed on how to use them within the course book. These included Writing for 100 days, which Gia LOVED. Although it is written for classwork, OM guided her around the work she could do independently and she enjoyed it’s structure and space it gave her to write in.

The last element shocked me as it was the Strunk and White book, Elements of Style.
 I remember my sisters using this book in university, so it was rather surprising to see my grade 8-er working her way through the notes on the design of writing. She really did well with it (and is enjoying explaining semi colons, colons and various grammer to her older sister.)

Last month I was happy to be able to attend a homeschooling conference in Halifax, where I represented Oak Meadow’s amazing work. I still can’t get over how effortless it is to discuss this work side by side with my work of Spiritually Aware Parenting… because watching how my daughter has grown as herself and with the knowledge she has attained… it makes me breathe a sigh of relief. It really is exactly what I was hoping for for her.

She’s now off to work through the Science. That’s going to be a challenge for her, as she naturally gravitates towards the English and reading, especially when it’s full of imaginary worlds. I’m facinated to see how OM creates a platform of curiosity as she dives into further into the Scientific studies.

Oh… also, I just heard that Oak Meadow started a Celebrating Spring Sale, and it’s on until the 31st of May 2018. It’s 20% off the bookstore OR 10% off Enrollment. (we do self-led study of the program, but enrollment means your child has a teacher at Oak Meadow and they send in their work!)
At this time in our world, I know a lot of people are looking into Homeschooling as an option. I strongly encourage you to look into OM. And if you have any questions feel free to pm me. I’m happy to talk more about our experiences so far.

A student's (my daughter's) thoughts on the Oak Meadow homeschool Curriculum

As parents, we can observe our children, watch their behaviors and mannerisms and basically try to guess how they truly feel about something they are experiencing. Sure we can ask them honest questions, but deep down, we know there’s a chance the answer being given is the one our children assume we want to hear.
Often our children might not know their inner truths themselves.
In my own experience, it is only in the still of the night, when all is calm, that I can quietly feel my way to how things are unfolding for my children and if there’s any new ways I can support them.
Early on this year in one of these moments, I suddenly found myself feeling the need to help our, then 13 year old, daughter, Gia, and I’m so glad that once we acknowledged the issue, we were able to allow in such a glorious solution.
January 2016 was a strange month in our homeschooling journey. She’d pushed herself through some painful lessons on line before Christmas the month before, had plowed through a workbook that had given her no joy. Our Gia is our natural joy-lover. She has always loved to have fun, to create, to play… and to explore the world with a passion. I’ve struggled in meeting this need over her years of homeschooling, since I’ve never been fully able to break the belief of schoolwork being something you just “had to do” and not enjoy. But, for Gia, this had to be different.
Her older sister has always loved the challenge of pushing herself, of the challenge. She was teaching herself to read by the time she was 3 and now at 15 finds university courses exciting. Gia, who’s only 10 months younger, has always been pulled between her natural tendency to play as a process to learn and the pursuit of changing her natural ways of learning to “catch up” to her ambitious sister.
I was becoming more and more aware of how this inner battle was affecting Gia’s confidence and sense of self, and so, with that I reached out to Oak Meadow.
10 months later, having just completed her grade 7 curriculum in the program, Gia will admit to feeling completely different
​. The other day, as we were discussing 2017, she described the year as the one where she woke up and became sure of herself. Not only did she complete her year’s work (something that usually has had to fall to the sidelines for her own sense of sanity) it also helped her gain the focus and clarity to launch her own stop motion Youtube channel, where she’s now helping other kids all over the world make their own movies in this patience demanding artform.
We decided that it was important to wrap up the year properly, and as a final project for 2017 Gia has written a review of the Oak Meadow Grade 7 curriculum to share with you. It’s really exciting for me to have her here, expressing in her own words what I’ve been trying to articulate for awhile. Anyway, enjoy!

I’m Gia and I’ve been homeschooled my entire life.
Up until this last year, I’ve felt very unorganized and I didn’t like schoolwork. I always felt so stressed when trying it and I often ended up quitting a curriculum, meaning I would only do schoolwork in little batches. If I had a workbook or more traditional curriculum I felt that they gave me the information and gave me the questions I had to answer but they didn’t explain it in a way I understood so I never knew what I was doing.
Oak Meadow’s grade 7 curriculum has kept me interested all year. There were days when I’d think I wouldn’t be interested, but then when I got into it I would enjoy it. Ever since starting Oak Meadow I’ve become really confident in my writing and essays. I feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be with my age, which I was struggling with for awhile.

Why?
It understood me from a level that no other curriculum did. Other curriculums taught me like I was at school and made me extra stressed. I never absorbed any of the information, but Oak Meadow met me on a more personal level, using examples from real life and allowing me to write stories around the topics, so I feel them rather than just have to memorize facts and data.

What was my favorite project?
I was so proud of my automobile project, which was kind of surprising. I really pushed myself and made a great presentation of the information. I learned about how the automobiles changed over time and about the fuel through history. I never thought that was something I would be interested in, but I was!

What was my favorite topic and what did I learn?
My favorite topic was World History, which was also really surprising, since I’ve never been interested in history. I liked the structure of it. I liked how I would read about something, then do a project about it, and then go back to reading more in detail. It kept me interested and really built upon the topic.
The last project was really cool. I went back through the whole curriculum and reviewed all the projects. I got to pick out influential people from history and expand on them. I picked Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison, because the project was how the world be without their work and they made such a difference in the world we live in today.

The Grade 7 English section made me feel more confident in my writing since it had a section on writing mistakes and what they were and why people got afraid to make mistakes. They gave guidelines on how avoid the mistakes and I became a lot more confident in using those guidelines. I looked back at all my work since the start of the Grade 7 year and I could see myself get significantly better.
I read a number of books with the Grade 7 curriculum, both fiction and non-fiction. My favorite fiction book was Summer of The Monkeys, which was a fun book. (a few of the other books were quite serious and sad, which I don’t usually read because they make me uncomfortable. I usually avoid them, but I still read the ones offered in OM.) My favorite non-fiction book was the one on Amelia Earhart, because I learned a lot about her and now I feel quite educated in her life story and in early flight.

I now know the life cycle of stars!
I loved how I was able to write stories in the Science Curriculum as well, as that’s a really good way for me to learn. Whenever I write my stories I really felt I followed the guidelines of the curriculum completely and that makes me feel really proud of my work.
(I’ve never felt proud of my work in any other curriculum! When I completed a project in this year of Oak Meadow it made me feel so satisfied.)

I’m still finishing the math section, because I fell a little behind in that topic so I could really dive into the World History and English curriculum which was exciting to me. (I love how I didn’t have to go in order, I could work topic by topic if I wanted to.)Math has always been a struggle for me, and although Oak Meadow helps me understand it better than other workbooks. I still have to take it slowly. I do love how they offer the workbook with the test and practice pages separate from the guidebook.

What I learned about myself?

In some projects I feel I didn’t put enough energy in them, especially in the beginning ones. It was like I didn’t quite get how it worked, but then it clicked. I think I needed to be reprogrammed, because I had to change my view of schoolwork as a painful thing I had to do into a learning experience which could actually involved learning stuff and being interested instead of being in constant pain!

The Grade 7 curriculum also made me more independent when using it. At first I didn’t feel confident enough to take the lessons into my own hands so my mom helped me plan everything out each week, but gradually I was able to do it all by myself, planning out and scheduling out each week. It made me feel so much better in what I do now and gave me life skills for planning and organizing. I now use those skills in other things that I do, which makes life so much easier. (I can’t stand it when things aren’t organized, which I didn’t want to admit until I started to work with Oak Meadow. The grade 7 curriculum gave me the tools I needed to really shine.)


I would suggest Oak Meadow to anyone who is having trouble with schoolwork that follows a core-curriculum, because it reprograms the mind to be open to learning in a fun and interesting way.

Gia is 14 years old. Feel free to visit (and subscribe to) her youtube channel where she artistically (and patiently) creates and shares her Ever After High Stop Motion videos as Everstone Studios.

NOTE- As a Canadian, I can totally understand the extra stress of dealing with shipping and the exchange rate... that's why I was so excited to find out that Oak Meadow is having a boxing day sale to include Canada. The sale offers 10% off everything in the bookstore (including curriculum) + $1 shipping!
​Use the code: 2017BoxingDay

Do you have your hand on the hot stove?

When I was starting my positive parenting path over 10 years ago it coincided with my discovery of the teachings of Abraham Hicks… and the the concept of taking your hand off the hot stove really transformed my way of thinking.

When I first was introduced to the work of Abe and Esther, my husband and I ordered a CD of theirs (yeah… remember ordering CDs?). We listened to it so often that I can still hear some of it word for word in my head….

“We just want to encourage you to take your hand off the stove. But you say ‘ I can’t. My mother put her hand on the stove, her mother put her on the stove… it’s just what we do. The day I was born they told me to put my hand on the stove.” And we say, try it. And you sigh and say ‘it is sweet relief to take my hand off the stove. But who am I to take my hand off, when even my government and world has their hands on the stove?’ we say, put your hand back on the stove if you want to, but now you know that you have the choice.”

What’s the stove? Pressure. Struggle. Stress. The perception that life has to be hard, that success has to be achieved, that we have to push to get what we want.
That parenting has to be a painful journey with a lot of heartache… and our children will end up rebelling against us. That we have to control them, or cajole them to be the people we want them to be. (blech!)

We can take our hands off that stove of struggle, of pain. 
What I love about this image is the actual relief it sparks within me. I imagine having my hand in pain and then just lifting it off. I don’t need to pry it with all my might. I don’t need to push. I just need to remember that I have what it takes to just lift my hand out of the fire. I have what it takes to breathe deep and be. But I still forget. I still put it right back on there

What Abraham forgets to mention, is that as physical people, we also have neural pathways that pull us back into our old patterns. Each morning, as if on cue, we will get out of bed and put our hands back on that stove, unless we put some tools in place to remind ourselves that each day can be different. We can make a different choice.
Yesterday I posted a video in the group about how complaining literally becomes part of us and how gratitude (appreciation) breaks the pathways of negative perspective.
But it does take that choice of lifting our hands off of the high pressure world, in fact, making that choice each day, is really all it takes.

I remember when I was in theatre school, I would sit listening to what the teacher would tell us our project was or what was expected from us. I remember thinking “nah… I can’t even imagine myself doing that.” And then within a few weeks I’d be doing stage-fighting, or climbing 20ft scaffolding, or reciting some long piece of Shakespeare prose. I soon learned that it was just about jumping in and not pushing against it, and taking the step by step path before me. I’d get there in the end.

This reminds me of the concept of “headlights”… that when you drive at night you can only see a few feet in front of you with the help of your headlights, and yet you always end up at your destination. This is so true in life…
Sometimes, the only step that’s clear is to take your hand off of the hot stove.

This is such a valuable perspective for the end of the year, when we can just find that relief, even if everything around us is busy. Focus on headlights, focus on love, light and relief. You’ll get there in the end.

Positive Parenting when it gets tough!

I’ll be honest, when I first started on the road of “positive parenting", I had no idea there was a term for it.
I’d never heard of “attachment” parenting or “RIE”… all I knew was that when I got mad or frustrated with my children it felt horrible… and my instincts told me that it felt horrible because I was just mad my kids weren’t doing what I wanted them to do, and that made me feel like a bad parent. .
 At the root of it all, I was needing them to change to make me happy.
Which meant I was telling them that other people were the cause of our happiness or unhappiness. I would raise people who couldn't find their own inner joy. 

(Check out this amazing Positive Parenting Course Bundle available NOW... but only until Wednesday Nov. 29th! (over $1000 worth of positive parenting courses for $97!)

So, I had to find a different path which would build: 
1) A positive parenting relationship between myself and my kids.
2) A perspective of parenting which offered the positive message for my children that they were perfect just as they are.
​ And
 3) A positive perspective of myself. I had to learn that I was allowed to be Me… with all my foibles and isms, that make me ME.
When a child sees their parent being authentic, they know they are allowed to be themselves.
And for me, that’s what positive parenting really is… actually that’s what positive Living really is.

But then, we have the actual parenting part. It can be so easy to research positive parenting, but the application can be so much more complicated

. Life gets messy. Life can get Really Messy. How do we navigate through that? What are the steps we can take to be Positive Parents, especially at busy times and holiday times when the pressure is on?

If you noticed my number 3 above, you’ll see I had to find a positive perspective of myself. I had to be Me. When I could connect to being me and not some superficial concept of “mom” I had the foundation to fall back on. The lens to put on. The connection to call upon when life gets tough. 
And it does get tough. Life is fast. Sometimes things chug along in all blissfulness, but a child will have an off day. They will get stressed and so will we, but that's often where the learning takes place.
 That is actually a huge part of positive parenting: understanding that even the tough moments have purpose.

In each off, tempery, fiery, crazy and chaotic moment with our kids, we know that we can stop in our tracks. Its ok to have an off moment and to feel anxious, worried, or sad. It’s an opportunity to learn and grow together. Negative emotion is nothing more than an indicator that we aren’t seeing through our spiritual perspective. If we try to push the indicator away, we can’t listen to it.

OK… but some real tips… How can we positively parent in the rush of it all?

1) First, know that energy matches energy, so when a child is frantic, we can practice finding our inner calm, breathing deep and bringing in a different feeling space of love. We don’t have to go into the situation with panic and trailblazing.
Our children might be scared of their own feelings. With us remaining grounded will support them and light the path back to stability.

2) Listen. Listening to our children’s experiences, emotions and thoughts gives them a space to express and explore what they really are going through.

3) And then offer. We can offer tools to feel better, we can offer a hug… we can even offer solutions like quiet spaces or car rides to leave the situation entirely. But also, when our children are in disagreement with us we can offer them our WHY. Because often the very reason they say no to us is because they don't understand what we are suggesting, or they are trapped in their own thought processes. 
Give opportunity to shift to a better feeling space, without forcing them to feel better. Shine a light in the emotional darkness.

Positive parenting means that our children don’t have to navigate who they are alone. They can explore themselves and the world of emotions and life supported and held.

Also… always remember that children live in the moment. 
The future and past are abstract concepts and often feel overwhelming. This is why holidays and celebrations often don’t work for young children, because the moment of seeing beautiful snowflakes can be just as exciting and wondrous for a small child as any Christmas morning… so… we can remind ourselves to see the wonder in every moment as well. We can train ourselves to see through the eyes of a child and enjoy the world for its everyday… not just on a special day.

I think the most beautiful part about positive parenting vs conventional parenting is the knowledge that it isn’t about getting results from our children, rather acknowledging the journey we are all on.
When we want our children to give results (such as good behavior and manners)for our own comfort we skip all the important steps that the challenging moments can offer us. But when we remember the journey of life and look for the tools of love and support we can offer them, our parenting becomes a foundation building experience, which leads to the confident, loving and positive focused adults our children can become.

(Positive parenting is such a wide, exciting topic and appears in so many ways. It’s a wonderful experience to explore and consistently learn about it. This Monday (27th) to Wednesday (29th) you have an amazing opportunity to expand your positive parenting toolbox.
You can get over $1000 worth of positive parenting courses and all their material for only $97 with this Premium Positive Parenting E-course Bundle.. This is really a once in a lifetime sort of chance, with courses by Dr. Laura Markham and other amazing experts. and I can’t encourage you enough to check it out.)

GUEST POST- The benefits of Homeschooling by Sally Keys

A few weeks ago I was sent this article by Sally Keys over at Stitch and Sew. Although I don't often talk about homeschooling very often, as I understand that the option is often not available to some, I think Sally does a beautiful job pointing out the benefits and opportunities Homeschooling brings.
For more information on how I homeschool my teens, you can check out this post or watch this video to hear more about the Oak Meadow's grade 7 curriculum we are currently using with our daughter.

The Benefits of Homeschooling

Homeschooling is becoming more and more popular, and while it can certainly be a challenge, it is also a particularly rewarding experience. Today, more than 2 million American children are homeschooled. They also tend to score significantly higher - up to 30 percent! - on standardized achievement tests. However, homeschool can also have significant spiritual benefits and can help your child grow socially and emotionally. 

Homeschooling Means More Learning in Less Time

Schools have a very strict schedule which usually doesn't equate to excellent time management. Homeschooling, on the other hand, allows you to tailor the activities to the educational goals of your child and avoid wasting time in administrative activities. Furthermore, schools are particularly frustrating for bright children, as they usually finish activities before the rest of the class and feel bored. Homeschooling permits you to speed up or slow down as much as you want, according to your child's individual needs.  

Homeschooling Fosters Strong Family Relationships

Homeschooling brings family members together, fostering intense relationships between siblings as well as between children and parents. Furthermore, one-on-one teaching is much more effective than teaching a class of 20 students. Finally, the dedication of a parent to his or her child and the degree of connection make homeschooling a wonderful option. 

Homeschooling Develops Creativity and Self-Confidence

Many schools focus on academics rather than developing creativity; usually, children are encouraged to think like everyone else. Homeschooling allows children to form their own opinions and foster creativity, as parents are more likely to support independence as opposed to teachers. Homeschooling allows children to be more assertive and less scared of expressing their opinions, as they know they're in a safe physical, emotional and moral environment. Homeschooling also lends itself to more research and in-depth exploration of areas of interest, without waiting for everyone to be at the same level.  

Homeschooling is Healthier 

Homeschooled children have more time for physical exercise and often get outside more, experiencing healthy and spiritually beneficial activities such as gardening while learning. They also usually have a healthier diet than their peers who attend a regular school, as it is easier to prepare healthy meals at home. Cooking with your kids is very beneficial, as the children learn to prepare their own meals and learn about what makes a meal healthy. School lunches or home prepared lunchboxes are not as packed with nutrients as homemade meals. Furthermore, homeschooled children aren't exposed to as many germs and therefore need less medication. 

Homeschooling can be a wonderful way of developing a strong and meaningful connection with your child if done properly, while giving your child a chance to excel in areas which aren't usually covered in depth or covered at all at school. 

5 steps to building on Self Awareness (as the first step towards mindful living)

It's becoming pretty mainstream to practice some form of mindfulness nowadays. Even within our schools, meditation or focus time are replacing the traditional standards of detention or lines in some states and provinces. There is a growing understanding that mindfulness and calm create better mental health and prepares our children to deal with the chaos and turmoil our world can often offer.

But how do we create a solid foundation in mindfulness for our children... not just the action of it?

I mean, it's a wonderful step in the right direction to get children to sit quietly and listen to a guided meditation, or to focus on their breathing but how do we build the awareness for each child so they can appreciate the actual purpose for doing so?

It's a bit like teaching a child how to do math, but not actually helping them understand the reason why they need it or when to apply it within life.

It could also be seen as the philosophy of giving a child a fish to feed them for a day... giving them calm for a moment so their day is successful.

When we have the ability to teach them how to fish and feed them for a lifetime. Our children can be the generation to use mindfulness and conscious living as daily and lifetime tools for happiness.

I can feel you call me an idealist, but honestly, I feel there's one small shift in how we present mindfulness that will make all the difference.

We just need to pass on Self Awareness first.

Self-awareness gives us the navigation skills to sense when we need meditation, when we need positive focus when we could do with quiet or when we would be best to dance out our stresses. Self-awareness works alongside mindfulness to create presence and conscious living, allowing ourselves to sense when we are starting to get stressed or upset by observing rather than reacting.

Imagine when you were a child having the tools to sense when you could do with some quiet time rather than being “told” you need it. Imagine feeling that stress within you to the point of exploding and being able to find your breath and shift to feeling better. How would that have prepared you for the rest of your life?

Sure, maybe I'm an idealist sometimes. We all have off days and we can all jump off the awareness train when life get's busy. But I called this business Spiritual Aware Parenting for the reason that even when we're off, even when we're stressed, even when we aren't thriving, we're aware of the fact that mindfulness can be a tool to help us get back on. We're aware of our own offness when we practice Self Awareness and self knowledge for a little while, which makes hoping back On all the easier.

So, what does that mean? How do we pass on Self Awareness to our children as a foundation for mindful living.

1. Practice it yourself. Example is key within Spiritual/peaceful parenting. Verbally say you are going to get quiet to “feel more like yourself” when you start to get stressed. Journal, create energy focuses with music, find your joy and follow your bliss. Become aware of Who You Are and How to Step into Your Light.

2. Talk about emotions and preferences. Ask for your child's opinions and listen to them.
   Opinions and preferences are extensions of perspectives and perspectives are extensions of self expression, which comes from self-awareness.
3. Open up to a range of experiences and discuss how they feel. Go on nature walks and simply Be. Watch calming movies/shows after watching something faster or louder. Do something that makes you feel excited or exhilarated and compare it to cuddling together reading a book. Contrast builds awareness to how we feel and what we resonate with.
4. Create and explore curiosity. It's easy to brush aside a child's questions during the day, but breaking rhythms and exploring with them opens life up and allows you both to grow and learn.
5. Quiet bedtimes. Consider bringing bedtime 30- 45 minutes forward so you can create it as mindfulness time without calling it that. Make it your own time for presence as well as your child's. Let the energy of the house shift, slowing down and unwinding from the day. Read happy stories and listen to your child's. Allow the energy and peace flow through your home moment by moment and watch as your child adapts to it, becoming aware of how things change in feeling and how it affects them.

Self/Spiritual awareness is about presenting opportunities to feel, observe ourselves, and experience life.

It's about Aha moments. :) It's about thriving rather than surviving.

I'm so passionate about passing on self/spiritual awareness to children (Some people ask why I put self and spirit together... the reason is simply this. We are all Spiritual Beings having a physical experience, not the other way around. Therefore, true self awareness is spiritual awareness.)

That's why there's a whole section dedicated to Self Awareness within my Spiritual Kids course.. to help lay the foundation. Then there's the emotional awareness section as well, which creates a deeper foundation to our children knowing Who They Really Are, and that's not even counting the meditation section. I created the course so Spiritual awareness could be created in layers, step by step... for you as well as your child.

(I actually have had a lot of parents tell me that they've enjoyed the content just as much as their children have. We can all be Spiritual Kids.)

Spiritual Kids is available from the website and there's a special promo on at the moment as well, where if you enroll in Spiritual Kids you also get the mini course “Go from Too Busy to Play to Connection with Your Children.” which is a 7 day e-course delivered to your inbox with exercises and videos to help you be more present with your children even with a long to-do list.

We All Need Heroes

As a huge portion of the world sits watching how Irma and all her offspring will leave parts of the world when they are finally gone, while others are still dealing with Harvey's aftermath or the fire damages, I want to talk to you about something we all need.
Heroes. They come in different shapes, forms and intentions, but I want to encourage you to take a moment, breathe deep, and consider yours for a moment... yours, and your children's.

See my son finally sat down and watched Superman with the family.

No, not some violent, dark film where it's confusing to figure out who's fighting who... but the real Superman. The Christopher Reeves man of steel, who wants truth and justice, who never lies and sends half his income to his silver haired mother. The hero who inspired my generation to be better people... and not hurt others... only create a better world.

I've been eager to show my son this movie, but since he accidentally saw some scenes of the newer Superman a couple of years back, he's adamantly refused to watch any superhero movies... and who can blame him.

So, why, you ask. Why am I happy to finally get him to watch Superman?

Because, as much as  Postman Pat, Little Bear, and good ol' Christopher Robin create a beautiful world for my boy I've been feeling that he also needed some heroes to shine a light forward as he grows and expands in life.

Life is full of contrasting experiences for all of us. We experience challenging times to discover our inner strengths, desires and yeah... our inner heroes. (That's why we create stories about them in the first place. Without challenges, no storybook hero would have a chance to exist.)

My son wants a pretty world in his head, but let's face it, there's a lot of fear in the world and a lot of things we "don't want". I want him to know stories of good, kind, strong men and women, who shine their light and see the best in all. I will never force him to learn of them, but I'm happy when he opens up to them. I want to be able to hold that image as an instruction manual in times of need. How would Superman react in times of crisis? (and no... not just the fly around and save the day sort of way... the compassionate, caring and loving way.)

The world made a little more sense to my son yesterday when he watched Superman with his classic cape and bright red boots. He works for justice and refuses to hurt anyone.

We all need heroes.

Awhile back I was discussing heroes with someone and they were asking what the point of having heroes was. I mean, in some ways people could see it as a form of idolization or mimic to look to someone else and hold them in high enough regard to garnish the term “Hero.” Others use the term as “Modern Day Heroes.” Someone who got the job done did what was right. Fought for others.

But I have another view of heroism.

We choose our heroes as those who have perfected qualities we want to foster within ourselves.

They are more than people we admire, rather we have an intuitive pull within us when we find a hero, as we know we have witnessed or seen the world through the eyes of someone we want to be more like, they emulate our ideal self and in doing so, they can help us get a better sense of how we can practice that.

If you've studied self-help at all, you know the power of visualization. You have probably heard the concept of the Ideal Self (Hey, if you've worked with me or are enrolled in the Stepping into Your Light Course, you've worked on that concept already.) Well, a hero can give us a good platform to work from when designing that concept, because by witnessing their actions and how they carry themselves we get an intuitive snapshot of what we resonate with ourselves.

My mom's hero was Marmee March from Little Women. The quintessential mother, who raised her daughters to stand strong and think independently. This concept of a hero helped shape my mother's life for a very long time.

I've had many heroes over time.

Probably a steadfast one is Madeleine L'Engle, who wrote A Wrinkle in Time as well as so many others. She wrote because she had to, it was in her soul. She had to get the words to paper. She wrote what she lived, what she loved and she shared so much wisdom with the world.

Anne, from the Anne of Green Gables, reminds me of fiery spirits and the power of the imagination.

Larry from The Razor's Edge... reminds me of letting Spirit guide you to a sense of empowered individualism.
Elizabeth Gilbert for her Authenticity...
Louise Hay for her embrace of life and contribution of love. (We'll miss you, Louise. <3 )

Perhaps, as a mother, I resonate more with Marmee March than I thought I did...

I think it's time we all put thought into our heroes.

A Hero casts an image, a framework, which we can try on and see if it feels like a comfortable fit. It then can help us remember ourselves in darker times, and give us direction to find our inner compass when we think we've lost it.
(Remember the phrase and trend WWJD (What Would Jesus Do?) Asking ourselves what our heroes would do in any circumstances can give different insight and direction.

Now, as someone who continually talks about our inner guidance systems and trusting your own spiritual connection, I'm in no way suggesting you simply act like someone else. Rather, our heroes actually can remind ourselves of the best parts of us.
They remind us that we aren't alone and, like my son experienced, they tell us that there are others who have high ideals and peaceful intentions. That it is true power to be kind and the light is incredibly strong indeed.

 By the way, The Stepping into Your Light Course is open for enrollment for only $77 at the moment. The course really supports your high self, helping you discover your inner light and help it shine, releasing what holds you back in the shadows. We will be having a group study of the material within the private Facebook Community in a couple of weeks which really gives you support and accountability through the whole 4 weeks of the course.

Also, if you would like to chat about your heroes, helping your children discover their heroes, or even just about Spiritually Aware Parenting and how to use it to resolve any challenges you may be having, feel free to book a connection chat with me. It's a free 20-minute session where we dive deep and explore what's holding you back and what you can do to break free.