I don't really have anything to report on lately. I just wanted to come on and say hello, and to let you know I'm caught-up again with all the comments on the blog. For about a week I got behind. I had a hump to get over. I'll be honest - I haven't felt myself this past week. I've not had the energy that I've had lately, so I was unmotivated to do much of anything except sleep and rest. We have these bumps in life; they're part of the ride. The key to overcoming them is accepting them. I accept that I'll have rough days every now and then. Life is not always a downhill ride; that would make it too easy. We have to push ourselves to make it over the bumps that present themselves to us in life. There are always going to be greener pastures, but if we water our own pasture and give it care and patience, our pasture will soon be green, too.
Elsewhere, for a few months I've had daydreams of opening up my own spiritual gift shop. In it I would sell self-help and spiritual books, books from all sorts of religions, CDs, movies, candles, trinkets, jewelry, art and other similar items - basically I'd sell anything related to spirituality, philosophy and religion. I don't know how I'd get this idea up off the ground. I don't really have any money, and also I have other fears holding me back. While there are no stores like this in my area, except for a Christian book store, I have fears that my store would soon close. Because of this, I don't feel secure giving up my day job to work every day in a store that I am unsure of. My future is uncertain, but I don't want to make it even more uncertain. Are my dreams doomed to just stay dreams?
I have one more piece of news to report today. The walk last Saturday went really well! I took some pictures so I'll probably post a few in the next few days or so. My goal was to raise $100 and I ended up collecting $120! I went beyond my goal, and my husband raised a little bit of money, too. I feel good about contributing my time and energy to a good cause. Overall, I think the March of Dimes walk was a success! There were about 300 people there. The scenery wasn't that exciting, but it was motivational to be in a group with other people working towards the same goal. We walked 4.5 miles. Most of these people were serious walkers, so the pace was quicker than I'm used to walking on my treadmill at home. The first half hour I had a cramp in my left calf muscle, but it disappeared after a while and I was able to quit thinking about it. It was good exercise!
Oh, I also want to say that on May 26th I'll be gone for about seven days. My husband and I are going out west. We'll be in Arizona and then Las Vegas. We're coming home on the 2nd of June. So, you won't see any posts from me then but after I've had a chance to unpack and get situated, I'll come online and answer any comments you made during my absense.
24 comments:
Sophia,
Regarding your idea about a spiritual gift shop: not far from me there is such a shop. I don't know if it interests you but this is their website address http://www.innerbookshop.com/
This shop has been open for many years and does good business.
Best wishes to you Sophia from Rob (Mmmmm)
I've often wanted to open a store similar to the one you speak of; but throwing in lotions, bath salts, various local, organically grown and produced food stuffs, etc. Sort of Practical Magicish with a more "out there" appearance in the spiritual community.
Congratulations on the walk and I hope you have a wonderful trip.
Cheerfully,
~ Christi
Sophia,
If you really want to open a your shop, you will find a way. You can overcome your fears.
Glad to hear that you enjoyed your walk. I used to do this as a teenager every year. I always enjoyed it.
Have a safe and fun trip. Looking forward to your return. Your voice will be missed.
Funny I turned on the TV and what did I get. A documentary on the Hoover Dam, the Colorado Rive and the Grand Canyon. Sounds like a grand trip. Maybe I'll visit my sister in the US this year; she's got two children who wants to meet me after seeing my music video on you-tube. Hasta Las Vegas!
Some time ago I've been to one of them Christian bookstores before it was closed. Bought three Gospel music on tapes and listened to them for a while; I like Gospel-style music inspite of the message.;>)
I also like going to these Third-World stores and sometimes I get some wood-carvings and figures in concrete. These things reminds me of Asia and Africa. I hope to buy a dijeridoo in the near future. Once I saw a street musician playing it in Antwerpen; he was completely in a trance he didn't notice his saliva was profusely dripping out of the instrument. He was probably using it to meditate.
:) I believe if the store is right for you, the universe will present a way for it to happen. It sounds very nice; I would take a stroll through it.
As for the lack of energy and feeling a bit off.... I have heard other people saying this, as well as myself. I can not get energized for the life of me. I feel like I am dragging myself through mud. Maybe there is somekind of energy sucking "it" in the universe at the moment. lol You never know.
Have a good time!
Hi Sophia, just stopping by to thank you for visiting my blog!
And wow, I loved what you wrote in your blog: "There are always going to be greener pastures, but if we water our own pasture and give it care and patience, our pasture will soon be green, too."
Yes, I am finding truth within that. Having spent most of my life wishing and waiting... I am now realising that my dreams are the result of the energy and love I put into them. Your words remind me that its the nurturing we give to ourselves that creates our experience and potential of life. Thank you, with love, Louise x
You must dive in and get wet no matter how cold the water. Open a shop, advertise, get local papers to interview you, local news outlets to cover your effort , and be someone others would want to talk to and buy stuff from. I have found that the stores I visit most may not be the cheapest or the most popular but contain people who I wish to talk with and give my business to.
If you wait for your next life, everything might change!
Hi Sophia,
About the bookstore...sit with it awhile. See it as real and see how it feels. Get really into the sights sounds smells of stocking shelves, dealing with distributors, handling the everydayness of it. Feel your heart when you are visualizing this.
On the practical side, talk to the Small Business Administration SCORE people. Just type in SCORE in GOOGLE. There is a wealth of people able, willing and free to help you in deciding if this makes sense for you. This moves you from thinking about it to really moving toward it.
Whatever you decide will be perfect for you...how could it be otherwise?
Why not set it up online? I think it's a great idea. You write well and come across as sincere. What more could one wish for in a spiritual store? Amazon is a good partner for this kind of idea. Check out the concept of Wikinomics
Hello! Been very busy. Hard work.
Last week I've been to a garage sale and the first thing that caught my eye was a miniature of my black ebony buddha. Naturally I bought it. I als also found a copy of Helter Skelter, the true story of the Manson murders. Just curious.
Distractions are the spice of life. You should let people distract you. They are fun to be with.
Work and no play make Sophia a dull girl.
Call it SOPHIA'S SOFA SHOP and design a website like a sofa surrounded by Light in the forms of books and bricabrac, A SOUL IN ONE.
BTW ALL, these names are copyrighted, see me for priveleges.
Hello Sophia,
You should visit Sedona and Yosemite National Park if you get the chance. Both are wonderful.
Hope you have a great time.
All dreams are possible! My mother has slowly built up her message/energy-healing practice while working, and it is wonderful to watch it grow. If your heart is in it then I am sure you can accomplish whatever you desire.
Boy do I have a lot of comments to catch up with! Thanks guys. I feel loved. :) I don't know what excuse to give for not coming back sooner, but I think the truth works best. I've honestly been very tired the past week since returning home from my vacation. I have not really been on the Internet any since the return. I've just felt like sleeping! I'm working on that though, by taking some vitamins. It doesn't help that I'm not in great physical shape right now. I truly believe that if I ever get my act in gear and get in shape, I could have more energy.
Thanks, Chris. It was a magical adventure. Arizona was intense. Las Vegas was OK. I wish I had spent the whole time in Arizona instead of spending three days of my time in Vegas. But, I can't complain, I did get to see the Beatles Cirque du Soleil show, as well as the Bodies exhibition!
Thanks for the link, Rob. Everything that shop offers is right up my alley! I would love to own something similar. I don't really want to make tons of money or anything, I just want to make a shop like this available to people in my area, because I know how much I'd love to be able to enjoy a place like that. Also, if I owned my own book store like that, I could have an endless supply of spiritual books to read!
Hi Christi!
My town could also use the organic food shop that you're talking about. There is not one close to me that I'm aware of. I'd probably be driven to eating more heathy foods if I had goods like that to sell!
Thanks for the visit and comment. It was good to hear from you. :)
Hi Mark, I suppose it's like that saying from the "Field of Dreams" movie: "If you build it, they will come." :)
Anonymous: I'd love to see your video if you can send me the link!
We saw the Hoover Dam on our way to Las Vegas. They're really doing a lot of construction work in that area! We got out and took some pictures.
The Grand Canyon was definitely the peak adventure of the entire trip. Words and pictures can't describe standing next to something that took millions of years to form, and the beauty of the place is spectacular. I'll have to find my favorite picture that I took and post it on the blog.
Anonymous, I also like the store type that you are talking about, the kinds with wooden figurines of animals like elephants and giraffes.
The dijeridoo is an instrument that I've been interested in playing, it just seemed like the talent of circular breathing was so far beyond me that I could never acheive it. I played the flute for six years and I never learned circular breathing.
Hi Sophia,
Good to see your new blog.
It's not so difficult to find when you one knows where to look!
I give the link to Dave Oshana's blog
Spiritual Enlightenment:
A Guide For The Perplexed because I do not have my own yet.
An amazing coincidence that you were reading it 5 minutes before I emailed!
I heard of a similar stories of synchronicity from people who have met Dave. It's all so invisible, these mystical, things until they come into view - just like your blog : )
Shalom,
Avi
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