A PRAYER CIRCLE

Please join me in creating a healing prayer circle for my new dear friends, Diana and Josh, in Las Vegas, NV. As you read the amazing email I received from Diana on the blog posting below, you will hear of their current situation regarding her husband's health.

Please join me daily in the next many days, weeks, and months as we all focus and picture Josh surrounded in white light, in perfect health, with a perfect, clear, pink, happy brain! See him spending a long and lucious life with his adorable wife, Diana. See him as healed. See him as strong. See him as happy and healthy and energetic. See it so real and tangible that it gives you chills and you're smiling with delight.

I ask that you join this prayer circle simply because when our minds, as a collective, hold a similar image or intention, true magic and miracles can occur. This is the powerful of prayer...and of love.

Thank you, from myself, Diana and Josh.

With deepest gratitude,

Stephanie

THE POWER OF LOVE

“Lets go on a Phish Tour for our honeymoon” was what Josh proposed to me a few months after we got married in April 2003. I was already head-over-heals in love with him so I said “sure.” Boy was I in for a Phish culture shock! We had a great time but during the trip, I noticed Josh was not as talkative or social. Josh wasn’t sure what was going on but agreed something was wrong since he didn’t feel “right.” After flying home, we met with the doctors and they dismissed his complaints and said Josh was just recovering from the honeymoon and was having jet lag. Not convinced with the doctors’ diagnosis, Josh pushed for an MRI. MRI showed a tumor and what happened afterwards was all a blur. I remember rushing to the ER, meeting with the neurosurgeon, Josh under the knife, surgeon telling us the initial pathology report shows tumor was benign, and then the official pathology report a day later saying Josh has the worst and most aggressive brain cancer (Glioblastoma multiform). This was the beginning of our emotional roller coaster. Those affected with cancer knows what I’m talking about- one moment things are going well and the next, you’re in the ER for either seizures, blood clots, head pressure, tumor regrowth, weakness, etc. Our lives are lived from one MRI to the next. I truly now know what “living in the moment” and “living life to the fullest” means. When Josh was first diagnosed, the oncologist told us the typical lifespan of patients affected by this GBM is 6 months to 2 years. Let me tell you, the ride home was very quiet.

I believe it was fate that Stephanie’s and my path crossed. I had been watching her show on HGTV and was interested in what she had to teach. I was curious to learn what we could do to make our living environment more comfortable, uplifting, and inspiring. Hummm……. Well, Josh spends most of his day at home; his full time job is no longer a database developer but a brain tumor warrior! How can I transform our home to be the “healing hub” for Josh? We already have:

1) Prayers from friends and family and strangers from almost every religious background.
2) Doctors and medication/treatment working for Josh.
3) We have Duwayne & Mui (very close friends of ours and one of Stephanie’s biggest fans) religiously visiting every weekend for energy work. (Shockras and realignment of meridians)
4) Feng Shui (why not!)

Stephanie has taught us a lot through her show. Her show is the only HGTV show that has gotten me off my fat behind and actually rearranging furniture, clearing clutter, CLEANING! The most amazing feng shui exercise for me was going through our medicine cabinet (our personal pharmacy because Josh requires a lot of meds) and throwing away expired drugs, questionable bottles, etc. Second exercise was going through mountains of medical bills, health insurance claims, medical files, etc. This chore has been on the back of my mind for so many years and it felt so good to just mentally cross it off my to-do list. We’ve learned the kitchen (which is the center of our house) is the health zone and we are trying very hard to keep that area clean and de-cluttered.

I decided to go to Stephanie’s website and contact her personally. I told her what we were going through, and she wrote back. Then she called us personally to see how she could help. We spoke for about an hour. Stephanie told us that her father had gone through a very similar cancer struggle and was given a 3-month life expectancy, yet was still around 15 years later to tell the tale. So she gave us her parents’ number in Indiana, hoping that their story would inspire Josh and myself.

I was such a privilege to speak with Stephanie’s parents (Judy and Steve) and boy was my heart filled with warmth and peace. These people are out of this world! Like Stephanie, they were very compassionate, kind, and funny! Steve had the same type of cancer Josh is fighting and they’ve gone through the emotional roller coaster we’re going through. I had a huge sense of connection when speaking with them. Judy and Steve gave us advice on nutrition, meditation, and provided a lot of support.

This whole Feng Shui “thing” has gotten me to think about a person’s emotional state as well. Josh, my hero, is always upbeat and smiling. He’s always smiling because he’s surrounded by people who loves him, he’s in an environment that he’s comfortable and happy, and he doesn’t get himself into stressful situations. His attitude has contributed to his well being since this past July was his 4th year anniversary fighting this cancer.

Our friend Duwayne states, your home is where your friends/family visits, foods are consumed (to nurish your body), and if you’re lucky, a place you spend to relax and renew yourself from the outside world. It only makes sense to me to make our home as comfortable as possible and Feng Shui accomplishes this goal…its designing your home with a purpose! Cheers to Stephanie and her show for helping improve people’s lives and homes. She has definitely touched our hearts and we are so grateful for her inspiring chi.

—Diana (Vegas, NV)

9 SURE-FIRE WAYS TO USE FENG SHUI FOR WEIGHTLOSS

1. MAKE SURE YOUR KITCHEN ISN'T THE FIRST THING YOU SEE
Since our home is always talking to us and sending us subtle, unconscious messages, try to avoid seeing a kitchen or the site of food upon entering your space. Many women who struggle with weight have homes that have kitchens right in the entrance to the space. If this is your situation, try diverting the visual focus into another room by using color, dynamic artwork, or welcoming seating arrangments that help distract focus away from the kitchen and pull you more quickly into another part of the home. If these tips seem impossible, try hanging screens or adding tall plants to help hide the kitchen from first glance.

2. CLEAN OUT YOUR CLOTHES CLOSET!
That's right. Your closet may be making you fat. If you're holding on to clothes that are 2 sizes to big, far too small, or simply out of fashion, you're sending yourself messages that many be holding you back from your weightoss goals. By holding onto these items, they whisper messages that who we are today is not good enough. These items make us focus more on our weight, and as we all know, what we think about expands (no pun intended). We want to focus on optimism, joy and loving our bodies for where they are today. When we keep our thoughts on positive topics, we draw more of THAT to us. Think thin, and that's what you'll get.

3. REMOVE IMAGES THAT ENCOURAGE EATING
Whether it's images of larger people, or imagery of food itself, these all can send the message to eat more and more. By switching out artwork that speaks to who we wish to become in the next 2-5 years, we're far more likely to achieve those goals. Try adding artwork of energetic women, dancing or in movement, with the body type that you most admire. These objects can provide lots of subtle inspirations throughout your day.

4. HIDE THE TV
We all know that spending endless hours in front of the boob-tube can turn us into couch potatoes. And we all know what shape potatoes are! By arranging our main living spaces to inspire socialization, joy and movement, INSTEAD of TV watching, our lives can't help but reflect this change. Creating arrangements that aren't a shrine to a TV, but instead are created to inspire connect, communication and socialization, can add extra energy and optimism to your life. The more we're movin' and shakin', the less weight our bodies will hold.

5. CLEAR THAT CLUTTER
Our homes are a direct reflection of our bodies. When we have excess clutter, it creates stagnancy. And that symbolically can show up as stagnancy on the body in the form of excess weight. Holding onto things that no longer serve us simply weighs down our lives (and our bodies). Take a look at everything in your home and office and make sure that it inspires you and moves you forward in life. This purging and clearing process can be cathartic when struggling with issues of weight.

6. MAKE EXERCISE AND MOVEMENT FUN!
As they say "if you build it, it will come". Well, that couldn't be more true. If there's something in your life that you'd like to be doing, but simply aren't, make sure there's a space for it in your home or your life. If you're wanting to lose weight, make sure that you've created convenient ways to bring movement into your daily routine. If you have the space, incorporate a gym or dance floor into your home. Find a gym that's close by, find neighbors who will join you in nice long walks... If your exercise routine isn't convenient and fun, you simply won't do it. And let me again stress the FUN factor! We all know that using exercise as a way to beat ourselves up or feel bad about our lives is all the emotional stress we need to find ourselves standing in the fridge, eating peanut butter out of the jar with our fingers. If you currently have an exercise routine and it's absolutely no fun, your assignment is to STOP. Find something today that's fun and feel's like play. Children are naturally tuned into their bodies and work movement effortlessly into their daily routine, and NOT as "exercise" or "calorie-counting". And guess what? They're naturally thin! Try making FUN the first priority and see if the weight doesn't start coming right off.

7. BEAUTIFY YOUR KITCHEN
When we struggle with weight, often times we've turned food into our enemy, and considering how delicious and sacred food can be, that's a darn shame! When we embrace food, make friends with it and actually ENJOY it, taste it, smell it, chew it, and delight in it, we can hear our natural body signals. Like a naturally thin person, embracing the dining experience allows us to hear what our bodies are geniunely calling for, eating when our bodies are hungry and stopping when they are full. Start by sorting through your freezer, fridge and pantry. Throw out all your old or freezer-burned foods. Then go through the cubboards and find ways to make things more beautiful. Try glass jars that allow you to see what you have, and creates the most beautiful experience when you open the doors. Delight in your experience with food, get fresh flowers for the table. Find any way to give yourself a positive experience in life.

8. INCORPORATE COOLING COLORS
Color studies have shown that wamer tones such as reds, oranges and yellows tend to heat up our desire to eat. Cooling colors such as blues, greens and blacks have the opposite effect and can act as appetite suppressants. Consider incorporating some of these cooling tones to placemats, wall or accent colors, or even to dishware. As we all know, relying only on cooling colors to lose weight is not the answer. But this can be a nice added touch to the home to support your weightloss goals.

9. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH THINGS YOU LOVE!
Feng shui is simply the art of creating environments that help you feel as good as you possibly can. When you feel uplifted and hopeful, everything in life goes much more smoothly and we live more abundant lives. When we surround ourselves with beauty and with nothing but objects we love, arranged mindfully and purposefully, we can create supportive, healing environments. When your space is constantly telling you "You're supported, you're beautiful, you deserve love, you're thin, you're WONDERFUL!" we begin to show up that way. If you follow this last tip only, you will be doing great feng shui!

© 2007 Stephanie McWilliams LLC


Join our mailing list to get Stephanie's FREE 6-week e-Class and FREE weekly newsletter– all sent straight to your inbox:

Name
Email

FAN LETTER:

I was so moved to receive this email, and wanted to share it with all of you. Thank you to this writer, as well as all the rest of you out there that are changing your lives, becoming more loving, opening yourselves to vulnerabilities and possibilities, and overall becoming fabulous, wonderful people! Cheers to you all....

"Stephanie...
6 months ago I got engaged. 3 months ago I moved from my single-gal apartment of five years--a place I loved, painted and charmed to my own personal perfection--into a new apartment in a lovely neighborhood, with the promise of room for my soon-to-be husband and soon-to-be life. One month ago I got married and my new husband moved in. My first roommate in at least 6 years. And a boy, no less! And just 4 days ago I turned 30.

A lot of change.

The energy is this new place is all out of whack. His boxes (and things) are everywhere and we're having such a time joining our lives and possessions. Not to mention, we're living in half of an old Victorian house, with great high ceilings--the same ceilings that gave the illusion of much more space. We are cramped! Only two bedrooms, one of which is his office--with his files littering the hallway as he gets organized, and my clothes desperately short on closet space. I've still not taken the time to pull out my paper and make my diagram and figure out where the energy is going, where each area falls, and what I can do to keep things moving gently. The place feels crazy (and so do we).

All of this is simply to explain how I found you! We were watching HGTV when Fun Shui came on the screen. I haven't had cable in years, and Darren knows how much I love that stuff, so we kept the channel in its place and watched the episode where you worked with the actors on their dining room. I got online to find you because I so loved the painting you did for them, I was hoping I could commission one for Darren and me. (I still haven't found the answer to that question!) It was so lovely. I loved the figures, the golden colors, and the couple intertwined with the crown all alongside. We're both trying to make progress in our careers, gain fame and good reputation, yet our bond to one another is at the center of it all. You're so incredibly talented!

So anyway...hgtv.com leads me to your bio. Your bio leads me to evolving arts. Evolving arts leads my to My Cup of Chi. And suddenly I'm absorbed in your blog and facing all of the issues and energies that I have cast away in this last six months of drastic life change. My relationship with food, same as you, same as nearly every woman I know--has resurfaced as a means of dealing with the continued stress. (And complete identity struggle. Who am I now?) My spiritual connection to God, naturally, is inversely related. Food up, God down. And even an issue I was trying to pretend had nothing to do with me was tossed right in my path through your post of Byron Katie's video.

So in effect I am only writing to say thank you. it's been a while since I've been reminded of the simple beauty in following a trail your heart sends you down. Each post I stopped on was exactly what I needed when I needed it. And as a result I'm inspired to ditch the clutter--in our new home, in my heart, in my health--and clean it all out to create a clear channel to God again.

Maybe you know it, maybe you don't, maybe sometimes you forget--but your collection of your thoughts makes a genuine difference to people you've never even met before.
I thought you should know. Be reminded!
— Fun Shui Fan"