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For all of us it means the end of summer and getting back to the grind of work, carpool, programs and more. At one time it meant — you can no longer wear whites after this weekend.

Whatever it means to you .. enjoy this last weekend of summer. It has been a great summer weather wise here in Toronto. I accomplished much of what I wanted to and and working feverishly to finish up stuff before my boys come back to me Sunday.

I also know that the “white” rule no longer applies – there really are no hard fast rules in fashion today – everything goes.

This is true for business. The rules of yesteryear do not apply to today. The next decade will bring so much change to our world – the power house countries, the emerging markets and the opportunities that they present, the role of our youth, the role of our baby boomers and so on.

I will enjoy this last weekend – continue on in my work however at a nice pace.

Whatever you choose to do this long weekend I hope you and your family enjoy themselves.

Take some time to dream about what you really want – come back ready to make some changes!

All my love,

Sandra

On my holiday I took one book with me and that was Barbara Walters’ book AUDITION: A Memoir. The book is over 600 pages. To be honest I had no preconceived ideas about her as a person or her book. I know that she was on Oprah sharing her book and that an affair was discussed but that is it.

Like all people we have our life stories — each and everyone of us and EACH ONE HOLDS VALUE.

Barbara Walters’ memoirs provide a truly human experience – she is not a demi-G-d, she is not super human, her life is not perfect, the path wasn’t straight to the top RATHER, she “fell” into TV at a time when it was not fully respected nor understood, she found herself coming up against her male counterparts (there were some supporters) in an ALL male industry, she had three marriages that ended in divorce, she travelled a lot in her career which did impact her daughter even though little Jackie was surrounded by loving people, and finally her drive was not driven initially or even many years into her career by her ego and success RATHER she was driven by the need to support her family – mother, father and mentally challenged sister. She carried a lot of guilt and fear – two forces that riddled her life. The title of her book is very telling: AUDITION. As her family moved around a lot due to her father’s type of work – he was in show businesses and created large spectacular shows – she felt with each move she needed to audition for new friends, at a new school and so on. This skill, good or bad, I believe assisted her in her life and success.

Why do I tell you this? When I finished the book and read about her failures, her triumphs, her persistence, the knowledge and experience she gained, how she broke through many barriers for future women in television even if that wasn’t her initial reason d’être, her life showed me that “if she can do it so can I”.

THIS IS WHAT I PASS ON TO YOU … If you want something enough you will find the strength to follow your dream even when others tell you that you cannot do it.

My work is about shifting paradigms that “push” against the current systems. There were many times I resonated with Barbara and saw how she stood alone in her fight to be heard and listened to. She did find her supporters and through her persistence and hard work, her intuitive knowing as a journalist – she became and is an amazing interviewer. She knows how to ask good questions and more importantly she knows how to listen!

The economy is shaky and many are concerned with their jobs, putting food on the table and keeping a roof over their head. To me this is the perfect time to start to think about what you really want to do. I am not saying to quit your job rather start to volunteer for something that you are interested in, start writing at home a few hours a week .. take the time and start to invest in your dreams. The path and road are never straight. If you did this and became derailed then put yourself back on the track and continue from where you left off.

Harland “Colonel” Sanders took his chicken business to new heights at the age of 65 when he began to franchise Kentucky Fried Chicken.

The summer is coming to a close and with September the mind begins to shift to work, school for the kids and the last quarter for businesses.

It is also the time to put your dreams into action. Go for it.

If you are on holiday this week with your family, enjoy. Have a wonderful weekend.

All my love,

Sandra

I am going to turn to my more spiritual work and guidance for this is an interesting time we are going through.

I read Spirit Library – there are a number of writers and I find it really helpful to let me know what is going on within the planets and the overall energy.

When I talk to friends who are going through similar things it is comforting for both of us to know we are not alone. As well, that it is not us and something beyond us. All we can do is learn to accept and let go of things – even the discomfort. It is what it is! And then there is the saying, “this too shall pass”.

So what is going on? I just read a great article I wanted to share with you:

Losing Hope: the final attachment – link directly to the article and Spirit Library.

a message from Lauren C. Gorgo
Monday, 16 August, 2010 (posted 17 August, 2010)
4101 views, 15 comments – login or register to comment
Remember in the last update when I said….”if we can walk through this VERY narrow doorway, fully present and completely void of an agenda, we will experience a major shift on many levels”?

Well, not that I need to tell you, but we are still trying to squeeze our full-bodied selves through that very small opening. And our success rate…or the ease by which it happens… has everything to do with the “completely void of an agenda” part.

Truth is, most of us want through that doorway so badly that we are trying e v e r y t h i n g we can think of to bust down that door and get the hell out of Dodge.

We’re being forced through sheer frustration to find our way out of this paradoxical box we’ve locked ourselves into…forced into surrendering to a new way of seeing and doing things, to accessing and using a whole new set of tools in an entirely new realm of human experience.

Trying and Prying
The last few weeks…but days especially…feelings of hopelessness and desperation abound. We have been frantically trying to access this portal to our new lives, scraping our nails against the grain, in search of even the tiniest clutch hold that will offer us the ability to pry that door ajar.

Each time we find a groove deep enough to leverage the door’s heavy mass, we loose our grip, the door slams shut and we fall back into our old ways, into those old energies that we are fighting to be free of.

Our physical bodies still screaming…”UNCLLLLLLE!”…bucking in complete defiance of integrating another ounce of light or pushing our way through one more day without resolve.

But even through all this resistance we are facing, we are being told that there is, in fact, a door here…and that there IS a way through it…and at the risk of reusing some played-out platitudes…we just can’t force it open with our hands, we can only will it open with our hearts.

Moving forward through this “active death zone” requires that we release all mental and emotional resistance to it….that we settle fully and completely into the present discomfort so that we can feel our way to the other side. It’s almost as if this doorway exists only for those who don’t want it…but more appropriately, this doorway exists only for those who don’t “need” it.

Which brings us back to the age-old anomaly….how do we NOT want something that we so desperately want?

And the answer is always the same…we have to release attachment to our desires…to let go by surrendering into complete acceptance of what-is. It’s not as if we will lose our heart-felt desires on the other side, its that they must be unplugged, upgraded, rewired, fine-tuned and completely free of human attachment.

Digging Deep
The Arcturians are telling me that…”there was a time when each of you were guided to the space of no space when you would more effortlessly release yourself from bondage. But now, in the final hours and through feeling the building desperation of wanting so badly to move forward, you are unable to find and settle into that same sense of relief.”

Gee, you think??? Now granted, I am just as guilty of this as the average idiot who agreed to this half-baked journey…wait, did we agree to this?…but somehow, by some obnoxious force greater than our own, we still. can’t. give. up. We HAVE to remember…now more than ever…that beneath the death-like fatigue and disconnection, we still have the power within us to push through these gateways… only its so easy to lose sight of this in the mounting frustration of our relentless stuck-in-the-mudness.

And if that weren’t a tall enough order, we must also realize that this frustration also has its divine purpose…it is the building momentum of sheer desire for something better that is accumulating like the pressure of a combustion engine applying irrational force to our refurbished pistons so we can be catapulted forward into our new lives.

So even though we are far beyond exhausted and weary…we are still being urged to remember that there is always a way to peace…but to access this space requires a shift in perspective… a release…a surrendering…and a letting go of unparalleled proportion.

Losing Hope
I recently mentioned that this letting go process was very similar to physical death in that we must first release all emotional attachments to get to the other side where love will abound in greater measure.

It’s our nature to hold on…but just as with all endings, the desire to hold on eventually begins to wane and we are left facing the uncertainty of “what’s next?”

Right now we are at the stage of releasing the deepest layers of human attachment, and that includes the desire to hold on any longer as well as our long-time companion…HOPE. From a higher perspective, hope is really just resistance in disguise. It’s a candy-coated expression of doubt, discomfort with uncertainty, dissatisfaction with what-is, and an inability to surrender into full presence.

Because we are stepping so fully into our authentic selves, we are losing our strength and ability to hold onto to anything…and hope is the last to go. Contrary to Forrest Whittaker’s vision in 1998…hope-doesn’t-float here. In fact, it will sink us if we try to hold on.

So don’t be alarmed or confused if you can’t muster up the energy to be-lie-ve in the outcome of this journey anymore…your not supposed to. We literally can’t take hope with us because it’s too dense.

Essentially, hope is a derivative of lack…of not-having, but wanting…of incompleteness…and it simply cannot be upheld in the higher frequencies of wholeness. Where we are going, hope is transformed into knowing and peace comes with presence when we are in full acceptance of what is, without wanting anything to be different. This is the ultimate state of surrender, and the one that is required to pass go.

Instead of hoping or wanting things to be different at this point, we need to take the opposite approach…we need to whole-heart-edly surrender ourselves so fully into the discomfort of uncertainty that we emerge on the other side with visceral knowing…assured of our mastery, and the ability to uphold it.

All illusions/delusions, hopes, dreams, expectations, etc….anything that we have fabricated in our minds or used as fuel…or carrots!…to keep us going, or propel us this far, must now be cut loose in order to fit through that doorway. And just to be clear here…that doorway is built on the threshold of both endings AND beginnings…when we come full circle, the end of the old is just the beginning of the new…which is why they happen simultaneously.

When in doubt, remember that it’s the faithful, not the hopeful, who will rise with the new sun.

And keep in mind that it is not as if we cannot have, manifest or achieve our heartfelt desires that are burned within our galactic-genetic blueprints, its that each doorway is getting smaller and smaller, and to make it through each one we have to leave behind more and more…to let go of what we perceive we need in order to be authentic and true…where we truly experience with every fiber of our being that we already have it all.

We are officially breaking through the most putrefied layers of sediment that exist at the deepest layers of our being. We are becoming completely empty (neutral) vessels so that the light of our divinity can fill in every nook and cranny of our deeply excavated personas.

This deep letting go is bewildering to experience, and it takes us through the most obscene challenges in facing our mis-creations and limitations. You may be thinking to yourself…what could we possibly have left to let go of…and just in that moment, we are faced with the realization that we are still holding on to the frustration of letting go! Yes, mastery is a mockery.

Physical Happenings

Everything hurts.

(For more detailed symptoms and information check out the TWYH forum.)

The Plunge
The physical proof of our galactic and earthly achievements is coming to a head, ready to burst open like the deluge of Noah and flood our vastly empty lives. And though we may feel incapable to be-lie-ve that truth any longer, the unseens are saying… “let go of that too!”

For those of you out there hanging on by that splitting thread…time to take the plunge! There is very literally nothing left to hold onto, and for good reason…because there is nothing on this side that we can take to the other…the only thing that remains is our trust in that still quiet voice within…the voice that is pushing us through despite all the resistance and frustrations that we are up against.

It’s very easy to understand how letting go of the last thread can be a very freeing experience, but actually doing it…peeling our fingers from the only things we have left to hold onto…to be-lie-ve in…to hope for…is a whole other ball game.

Rest assured, we are doing it whether we want to or not. It may not be pretty…it may not be fun… but somehow, someway, we are getting through that damn door!

The Key
This expansion process very naturally forces us to outgrow our past…to the point that nothing here feels remotely good or interesting, and boredom overtakes us as we waddle around in the void, waiting for our new level of reconnection to take hold. We are so bored here that even boredom is boring.

And if you’re anything like me then you are especially bored with the entire process and have absolutely hit your limit with all this damn ascension talk, talk, talk. Personally, I can’t even look at the word any more without wanting to bludgeon myself with a blunt object. Some mornings I wake up and think, there is just NOTHING left to say…we can’t possibly talk ourselves through one…more…day….of…this. And of course, then we do.

This is because we have explored all territory here and are moving on…oh god please…to a place where we will have new interests, or revised existing interests, that will finally have fertile soil to replace the once barren land that disabled the growth of our higher dimensional dreams. In our new gardens, however, our intentions will easily take root because the proper balance of nutrients are contained within the soil to sustain and nourish them.

From mid-August to early September we will continue to assimilate this huge expansion that is propelling us out of our old lives…albeit with a bit more connection… and into a the new framework by which we will operate. You may find that sudden endings are immediately replaced with new beginnings and that much of it is happening with or without your involvement. This as it should be as.

I am hearing that for the next few weeks we will be intermittently accessing new realms. Kind of like newborn souls trying to ground in the lower dimensions during the beginning stages of incarnation…and of course sleeping like them too…one day we may make it through to the other side, and the next we may be prohibited from entering…but each time we are successful, we will begin to intimately understand our ability to create without resistance, and to realize that this is exactly how it was always meant to be.

So each time you experience suffering, remember that all suffering is resistance to what-is.

There is only one combination to the lock on that door we are all trying to fit through: surrender-acceptance-acceptance-let go

Each time you reach down and find the ability to embrace the uncertainty, to welcome the discomfort…

Right, left, left, right, CLICK…

…your in!

To free falling…
Lauren
ThinkWithYourHeart.net

I also wanted to share that we are in RETROGRADE from Aug. 20th until September 13th. What does this mean? It means that communication: email, phone, twitter, etc. can be affected, as well as transportation. My suggestion is just go through the flow and be in the moment. There may be delays or negotiations may fall through, meetings cancelled. Whatever it is — just allow it to be and move through it.

I too will be GOING WITH THE FLOW!

Have a great weekend.

All my love,

Sandra

I am not talking about the kind you give to your children for their behaviour… I am talking about the kind of break that ME and YOU need to take from every day life and demands!

I am on holiday with my boys for this week and next, 2 weeks. I promised myself that I will work hard for July and accomplish certain goals (by the way I did accomplish almost all of what I wanted) and that when my children finished camp I will devote myself to them. I am still on line when they are busy doing other things however for the most part I am devoted to them – my time is there time.

We spent the first weekend with family – a birthday for my younger son with his cousins as well as a birthday dinner for my son with my family. By Monday I was exhausted and ready to get out of the city.

We have been enjoying cottage country. The weather has been fantastic and we have been spending time with friends and their children – swimming, tennis, water park, and more.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the last 4 days! I emailed a friend to tell her what’s been going on and she said she hasn’t heard me this relaxed in a while.

I am being in the moment and taking it all in.

I have not forgotten my lofty vision – no I am excited to spend the end of August/beginning of September putting it into action. For now — IT IS TIME TO RELAX.

I am signing off and going to hang out with my boys.

All my love,

Sandra

I hope that you are enjoying your summer and taking time, at least some time, to yourself.

I first went on to the conference call in June 2010 to hear how as women we are spent … exhausted. This prompted a blog about how we are no happier today than we were 4 decades ago. Christine Arylo is one of the leaders and guides of Summer of Self Love – 40 days. She sent me this letter which I wanted to share. It is not too late to begin the journey of loving and honouring ourselves. You do not have to participate however it is a worthwhile read.

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

All my love,

Sandra

Do We Really Have to Get Sick To Slow Down?

Hi Sandra!

It’s Christine Arylo here, dropping in from my deck in the hills of California with a love letter from me to you. It’s a Self Love Sunday and I just HAD to write to you!

You see, today is day 40 of the Summer of Self Love 40-day virtual retreat that I started on June 22nd with women from around the world… a retreat I created to help us women say NO to having to be, do and have it all and say YES! to receiving more (by doing less). I received so much in these last 40-days, including what I am about to share with you here.

Over the course of these past 40-days I became crystal clear on the silent epidemic that is hitting so many of us women, but that too few of us are talking about…

THE SILENT EPIDEMIC OF THE 21 CENTURY WOMAN …
OVERWHELMED, OVERWORKED, & OVER IT
(yet we beat ourselves up for it!)

The pressure we put on ourselves to do, be and have it all, coupled with how much we beat ourselves up for not being able to do, be and have it all, is slowly killing us. The pace of our lives is unsustainable, in fact, if we don’t make a shift, we as women are going to become unsustainable.

In the course of the last 40 days I have witnessed two of my coaching clients and one dear friend fall apart in sheer exhaustion, one enough to have to take a leave of absence from work. I have witnessed MANY women participating in the retreat come forward and say they too have these symptoms of exhaustion – weight gain, fuzzy thinking, insomnia, tiredness – but feel too guilty to take a break or just can’t figure out how to do everything that is required of them.

And I too ran myself into the ground… only 7 days into our Summer of Self Love Retreat, when my body and intuition said SLOW DOWN, TAKE A FEW DAYS OFF but I couldn’t figure out how to “DO” that. So, my body made it real easy for me. I never get sick, but over July 4th weekend, I was laid flat out on my back with a immense pain in my left kidney, a fever and an inability to DO anything but relax. I got a big taste of what could happen to me if I didn’t stop driving myself so hard.

In the process of getting sick, and the weeks that followed on our retreat,I had a lot of AHA’s about the subconscious patterns that have driven me to do, do, do for 30+ years. They say we teach what we are here to learn and that is truly the case with me… so I share with you from one 21st Century Super Woman to another this blog…

CLICK HERE TO READ Do I Really Have to Get Sick to Relax?

We women put A LOT of pressure on ourselves, and it’s time that we all supported each other to stop! Whether it’s calling up your girlfriend and saying, “I SO want to take the day off, but I just can’t, can you help me gain some perspective?” Or it’s admitting to a friend how overwhelmed, overworked and over it you are. Or like I did today to my friend who is a single mom… give your girlfriend the permission to take the day off, or at least a few hours off.

And to support yourself in making YOU more sustainable, I’ve included some questions in my blog to help you uncover the patterns driving you to DO too much, and BE too little. The truth is that we’ve been wired for generations to give more than we receive, and it’s OUR generations role to rewire ourselves and say I WILL GIVE AND I WILL RECEIVE. The last thing we want to do is to pass these self-sabotaging patterns on to our daughters.

CLICK HERE TO READ Do I Really Have to Get Sick to Relax?

with heart,

Christine Arylo
founder of The Summer of Self Love
co-founder of Inner Mean Girl Reform School

I have talked about leading a group of women – through the concept of a mastermind idea. We support one another on the road to making our dreams come true. Many mastermind groups are built on the principles of setting goals and achieving them. I have taken it one step further and start with your intentions – what is your true intentions in life? For those more evolved it goes beyond – the new job, new car, trip to a certain destination. What I really get you to look at is what is the feeling and knowing you want to have every day when you wake up: peaceful, happy, calm, abundance and so on. I have shown them how achieving a goal does not necessarily bring you closer to your vision (happiness, being more calm, etc.).

Saying that, goals and actions do play a part. We have started with our intentions – clarifying what we want and how we want to live our life – then moved to creating the vision board – the visual of these intentions. I have broken them up into two areas as we are human beings: the human side is our “doing side” – my youth work, workshops, bridging the youth and baby boomers, and so on. The being side is “my essence – who I am” – I am a committed mother, I love and honour myself and my truth, I am love, peace, caring and so on. Today we are at the action steps.

WISHING … we must move beyond wishing for things to happen and fall into place the way they are meant to. I will admit that patience is not my strong suit. I am working on it for I know that by creating a push/pull system will not help and will likely slow down the process. What I am learning to do is put things into action and then let it go. For me it means, send the email, do one follow up and then give it a week for those to respond. If this does not happen then I can follow up again and then wait for a response. In the meantime I can look at other corporations that I want to investigate and see if they are a consideration for my work.

I received this message and it was so appropriate:

Stop thinking that you have to make it happen, Sandra, and let it happen…
That you have to be better, and be yourself…
That I’ve ever judged you, and be free.

For me this is putting my TAO study into practice.

I am excited to go down this road.
—
I wanted to share a story of one of the woman in the group. She has clearly identified her intentions and created a vision board that is meaningful to her and now she is fulfilling her vision. One of the visions is that she is more financially aware – understanding her finances better so SHE can make the decisions for her family and self. I am really proud of her for I see that she has taken back her power and begun to ask questions and learn. She told me today that she is loving this and she feels so good about this. I told her that the more informed she is the better she can communicate with her advisor, accountant, tax person, husband and so on.

The irony is that she now knows that it was in her all the time and that it was her fear that stopped her and the decision to defer to her husband. It is not that she wants to challenge or go against her husband, on the contrary, now she is an asset to the team – for she is aware and can deal with her financial situations. If anything happens to her husband she feels confident that she can handle her finances.

I am really so proud of her. She has a ways to go before she is proficient — true for all of us! Even your advisor only knows so much – you may actually come to know more than him or her. If this is the case — it may be time for a new advisor. I recently wrote about an article I found that said that investors – especially those with a lot of money (this is true for all of us!) – want to assure that their advisor is meeting their needs and if not must be held accountable and responsible for their actions or lack of actions.

For too long we have handed our power away because we believed we do not know as much as they do, do not understand the terminology or due to fear. With some understanding and asking good questions we learnt it’s not so difficult. It’s really a matter of wanting to take back your power and taking full responsibility and accountability for your outcome. Go for it!

I’ll keep you informed with this journey for me and the other woman.

Me… I am going after all my visions and dreams. Nothing and no one scares me.

You can too!

Have a great weekend.

All my love,

Sandra

I am so excited… I am up north – about 3 hours from Toronto – and going to see my son tomorrow for visitor’s day at his camp. I am taking him out of camp and spending 5+ hours with him – just me and him. The next day my ex and his wife and all the kids are going to see him.

I am really proud of him. He has been away for 3 weeks already. I know he misses me. I feel that this experience is so important for his personal growth and finding his way. Yup, he’ll “fall down” and then he’ll get right back up again. This is wonderful for his social learning.

I have been working really hard the last few days — going for my vision and dream. I am reaching out to corporations about my work. It is really exciting. I know that it may take many conversations before I sign one contract deal. Why I am so excited is that I am putting to action my dreams, visions and goals.

I am also reaching out to very successful people to ask if they will be part of my youth movement. Persistence … I need to be persistent and follow up. I waited 7 years to bring it to fruition — I definitely have patience.

I really do follow my own formula – Clarity + Intention + Action = Results. Go for your dreams! We are here to support you.

I am also exhausted so tonight I am going to relax and take it easy.

Goodnight.

Enjoy your weekend.

All my love,

Sandra

I saw this movie last night with my best friend. We sat there not knowing what to expect. I LOVED every second of this movie. It was so well written, acted and directed. I wanted it to go on forever. I could have watched “Li” dance forever.
It compels me to want to go to the ballet!

What was more compelling was watching Li’s life story unfold and then the pinnacle moment when he decided to defect from his home country, communist China. He was taken (“chosen”) as a young boy of maybe 7 years old from his peasant family and brought to Beijing to study ballet. Unlike the other dancers, he struggled with why he was there. One teacher, Chan, takes him “under his wing” so to speak and introduces him to the art of classical dance. As his mentor, and a true teacher of classical ballet, he shares a story that stays with Li and unleashes a new desire for him to be his best. He does become the best. Unfortunately, communist China wants to infuse elements of communism into the ballet which really was in contrast to classical moves. Chan, his mentor, is taken away by the communist party as they question his loyalty.

Li is given the opportunity to go to America on a three month “visit” to study at the Houston Ballet, one of the most prestigious ballet houses in the country. He is there to represent his home country China.

In America he is faced with many questions — mostly questioning what he was “taught” in his mother country, communist China regarding the West.

When it is time to leave he does not want to. The decision to stay was not taken lightly. He knows that his country will not be happy however he needs to follow his heart. What his heart was saying was that in America he can dance the way he wants, what makes him feel free! He is an exquisite dancer.

THERE IS ALWAYS A CHOICE – FOLLOW YOUR HEART AND TRUTH OR LISTEN TO YOUR HEAD?. Some people may say it was selfish of Li to not go home …. the consequence of him deciding to not return was that he was ex-communicated from his country and his family. China, falling to global pressure, “allows” him to stay but says that he cannot come home to his country and will never see his family again. His decision haunts him throughout the movie. Did he make the right choice?

When making a decision, especially one that can carry such a large consequence, how do you choose? I say you do follow your heart. When you are born with a gift, one that brings so much pleasure to the world — even more so to you, the individual, it will go against every grain of your fibre to choose otherwise. I meet so many older people who have chosen a profession because that is what was expected of them but truly they hate what they do. I cannot imagine going to work every day of my life, spending hours on end, doing something that I hate.

Near the end of the movie, 5 years had passed and Li’s dancing reputation had reached new heights. He was invited to dance in Washington for all the dignitaries. The Chinese delegate was present and to our surprise and to Li’s surprise his parents were flown in to watch him dance. It had probably been nearly 20 years since Li’s mother had seen her son. When they reunite, it is so overwhelmingly powerful (I am bawling at this point) and there is so much unconditional love that is present that all you feel is this love — THERE IS NO ANGER OVER HIS DECISION OR QUESTIONING HIS LOYALTY. When his parents see him dance and the response from the audience, to me, it is evident that they see that he is fulfilling his purpose.

Li returns to China with his wife, three years later to visit his family — he dances for them.

What a beautiful story and what a great lesson.

If you are not following your heart or truth, and you will know, please consider taking steps to do so. You can begin to follow your passion as a hobby and then when you are ready to take the plunge — go for it! It is baby steps. When you are following your heart and truth, there is a vibrancy that is so evident.

I wish you all a great weekend.

All my love,

Sandra

On June 30th, 2010, Kidz2Kidz - the charity arm of my business – was invited to attend a local Pow Wow where the kids were honoured for their donations that they gave to Native Family and Child Services. The gently used sports and leisure equipment were given to a camp for native children.

The entire experience was wonderful for all of us. We saw the entrance dance, drummers and singers, young and old – all coming together and dancing. The place was set up in a circle with benches lining the circle. Through myself and Shirley we explained to the kids what we could and then we had some of the people from NFCS providing us with their knowledge.

I noticed that at this Pow Wow there was an elderly tent set up with a sign that was drawn from the children. In this tent everything was free and the elderly were honoured and taken care of. Many times throughout the day, the speaker would draw attention to this group. It really struck me how in this culture the elderly are revered and honoured.

THIS IS NOT THE CASE FOR MANY OF US IN NORTH AMERICA
We are a culture that worships YOUTH and I do not necessarily mean our young, rather the idea of looking young. We will go to all costs to look and feel young. It is not my place to judge what people choose to do to their body, it is their choice. I understand that. It goes beyond that though, to a point that we have place so much importance on the latest and greatest, tossing away age and wisdom.

There was a time when the young were mentored and taught by their older peers; when experience was passed down and shared. This changed with our competitive corporate environment when people were packaged out, laid off or replaced by a younger, less expensive “commodity”. Loyalty had a place in our work environment – both ways. While I believe the tide is shifting there is one thing for sure and that is our demographics. We have an aging population. The baby boomers represent the largest market in our country, those born between 1946-1964. The number of workers aged 55 – 64 has doubled since 1989 and for those over 65 there has been an increase of 129%.

While there are some areas of business where the youth dominate – Technology in particular – there are some areas of business where experience is invaluable.

It is my vision and desire through my VOICES OF YOUTH movement to bridge this gap. We cannot undervalue the experience and knowledge of our active baby boomers – otherwise known as ZOOMERS, a term coined I believe by Moses Znaimer. The baby boomers, I feel, is one of the most, if not the most, innovative, creative group that brought greatness to our businesses. Many started with nothing but the shirt on their backs and there was only one way to go -UP. I truly feel that if we can tap into this knowledge and experience with our youth, mentor them and guide them and then LET THE YOUTH TAKE THAT KNOWLEDGE AND MAKE IT THEIR OWN, CREATE SOMETHING THAT WILL IMPACT OUR WORLD we are honouring our older population, stimulating them, challenging them to stay open to new ways and ideas, yet fostering our young leaders of tomorrow. By bridging and uniting the young and old we will see a powerful and united country emerge; One to be reckoned with!

I wish everyone a great weekend. The weather here has been crazy hot! I hope you are treating your bodies well – drink a lot of water and get plenty of rest.

All my love,

Sandra

I have to admit that July 1st is a day of celebration – it is my birthday, my best friend’s mother, a very close friend’s husband, and the late Princess Diana. And for July 4th I have my best friend in the world, her sister-in-law, who I am friends with, celebrating her 50th. WOW what a weeeknd.

For me when I think about a country celebration, I really think about unity and coming together as one. Canada is an interesting country. It is unified on some levels and split on others. When we finally learn to ACCEPT our differences – and again by that I do NOT mean archaic religious beliefs that go against the grain of democracy – we will begin to come together and really unite on who Canada is and what we can do as a country.

Canada has so much to offer and I am looking forward to being part of a group of people that see this and want to guide, mentor and maybe even influence our youth to be an impactful, creative, innovative, and entrepreneurial leader. I have worked hard the last 6 months identifying my intention and purpose, clarifying it and creating a vision board – visual – in order to make my vision, purpose and passion come true. At 43 yrs old you learn to GO FOR IT! That is exactly what I intend to do.

For those in Canada and the US that are celebrating their Canada Day/Independence Day – please enjoy. Be safe, laugh, have fun and let go. It is a time for unity: family, friends and country coming together.

Have an incredible long weekend everyone! I know I will.

All my love,

Sandra

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