OK, so I've been tagged by both Jessica and Kira.  What did I do to deserve such an honor?  =)

So, here goes:

1. I was definitely a good kid, if not a bit on the geeky side.  I won the 3rd grade spelling bee, the 5th grade coloring contest, and in 9th grade, I built a replica of Dachau for a gifted ed class, I was drummajor (the one who led the band - not the one who twirls a baton), I was student council president, I won the "citizenship award" and "most likely to succeed" and -- probably most interesting -- I got busted by a chaperone on a school outing at Disney World for being with a cute drummer boy who was smoking pot.  Do you know how big Disney World is???  How did they find us???  The biggest bummer - I was such a good girl that I refused to smoke, but got in trouble for it anyhow!  Next time I will definitely inhale.  ;-)
2. When I was very young, I couldn't pronounce my r's.  So, one of the things my family loved to do (especially around the holidays) is make me say the word bourbon.  It came out something like boo-bon.  They would laugh and think it was so cute.  (I think I was born into an alien family ;-).  Thankfully, after speech therapy failed, my big sis was actually the one to teach me to say my r's (she's not an alien).  Hallelujah!
3. I was first chair in the Florida All-State band in 11th grade.  I played clarinet and was actually a music major for my first couple years of college.  And, when I transferred up to Boston University, the assistant principal clarinetist from the Boston Symphony was my teacher.  So cool!  We actually met in Symphony Hall - which made me feel like a kid in a candy store!
4. After not playing clarinet for almost 18 years, I picked it up again as a school project for my MA in Spiritual Psychology program.  I took lessons for six months and performed a concert.  But, because I didn't want the concert to be stuffy or rigid, I got a street performer's license and performed on Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade - me and about 40 of my closest friends!   I made $72, which covered my street performer's license and then some.
5. I am a huge fantasy / sci-fi fan.  From Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Star Wars to King Arthur/Merlin tales, I'm your girl.  In fact, my cat Morgaine is actually named from a  character in the book, "The Mists of Avalon".  While I love spiritual and intellectual pursuits, fantasy / sci-fi is my true indulgent pleasure!

That's me!  So I guess it's time I tag someone else, huh?  Here are my five:

Lily (Linda - my big sis)
Scott Schwenk
Scott Young
JP
Barry


Love & hugs to you all,
Nancy

Below is an excerpt from a book by Ken Keyes, Jr. - "The Hundredth Monkey."  It definitely reminds me that every choice I have re: being and living consciously counts.  We truly can change the world!  It has been a big inspiration to me, so I thought I'd share.  Enjoy!


THE HUNDREDTH MONKEY
The Japanese monkey, Macaca fuscata, had been observed in the wild for a period of over 30years.  In 1952, on the island of Koshima, scientists were providing monkeys with sweet potatoes dropped in the sand. The monkey liked the taste of the raw sweet potatoes, but they found the dirt unpleasant.  An 18-month-old female named Imo found she could solve the problem by washing the potatoes in a nearby stream.  She taught this trick to her mother.  Her playmates also learned this new way and they taught their mothers too.

This cultural innovation was gradually picked up by various monkeys before the eyes of the scientists. Between 1952 and 1958 all the young monkeys learned to wash the sandy sweet potatoes to make them more palatable. Only the adults who imitated their children learned this social improvement. Other adults kept eating the dirty sweet potatoes.

Then something startling took place. In the autumn of 1958, a certain number of Koshima monkeys were washing sweet potatoes -- the exact number is not known. Let us suppose that when the sun rose one morning there were 99 monkeys on Koshima Island who had learned to wash their sweet potatoes. Let's further suppose that later that morning, the hundredth monkey learned to wash potatoes.

THEN IT HAPPENED! By that evening almost everyone in the tribe was washing sweet potatoes before eating them. The added energy of this hundredth monkey somehow created an ideological breakthrough!

But notice: A most surprising thing observed by these scientists was that the habit of washing sweet potatoes then jumped over the sea...Colonies of monkeys on other islands and the mainland troop of monkeys at Takasakiyama began washing their sweet potatoes. Thus, when a certain critical number achieves an awareness, this new awareness may be communicated from mind to mind.

Although the exact number may vary, this Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon means that when only a limited number of people know of a new way, it may remain the conscious property of these people.

But there is a point at which if only one more person tunes-in to a new awareness, a field is strengthened so that this awareness is picked up by almost everyone!

---------

Pretty cool, huh?  I wonder if any of us will be the 100th monkey today?

I posted this blog one year ago today - it was one of my very first blogs.  Because it has such great relevance to being more loving, gentle & kind to ourselves, I thought I would post it again.  Happy anniversary to me.  Enjoy!

DO UNTO OTHERS . . .

I don’t know about you, but if someone finishes that sentence with, “as you would do unto yourself,” I’d steer very clear.  Why, you ask?  Have you seen the way people treat themselves?  Here’s a case in point. 

I was home over the Christmas holidays to visit my mom.  And, everyday I would catch her saying things like, “I look so fat”, or “I can’t believe I forgot that – how stupid.”  It went on and on and on. 

So, one day I asked her, “Mom, what would you do if Dad were here, saying those same things to you?”  (You know – “You’re fat”, “You’re stupid.”)  She defiantly declared that she would tell him to go take a hike!!!  And rightly so.  You go, girl! 

Then here’s the question.  Why would she do the same things to herself that she would never allow anyone else to do to her? 

Importantly, my mom’s not alone.  It’s a phenomenon I’ve witnessed in my Life Coaching practice, in my circle of friends, and in my own life.  You see, what we don’t always realize (at least consciously) is that we’re in a relationship with ourselves.  The most important relationship in our lives, as a matter of fact.  And we need to start giving ourselves the love, respect and attention we would want from any other relationship. 

So, do this.  Make a list of all of the qualities you want in a best friend or romantic partner (e.g., kind, loving, thoughtful, etc.).  Got ‘em?  OK, then make another list of all the things you want from a best friend  or romantic partner (e.g., you’d want them to spend intentional time with you, to say they love you, to do something nice for you on a bad day, etc.).

Now, check your relationship with yourself against those two lists.  How kind, loving or thoughtful have you been with yourself today?  When was the last time you made a date with yourself – and kept it?!  When you’re having a bad day, do you anesthetize yourself with TV, alcohol or ice cream (my favorite), or do you do something truly nurturing and loving for yourself?  And, when you stand in front of a mirror do you judge your newly emerging bulges, bad hair, or acne that’s blossoming even though you’re well past puberty, or do you simply say I love you?  See what I mean?

If we’re going to have conscious, loving relationships with others, we have to first start by having one with ourselves.  And trust me, I’m not immune!  It’s my walk and my work every single day.  But, on those days where I truly have been my own best friend, I can absolutely, positively, 100% say it’s worth it! 

So, I challenge you to pick at least one way to be your own best friend today – and do it.  You deserve only the best!

Here's a great quote from a very wise monk about changing the world.  Definitely words to live by.  I don't think it's saying we can't make an impact on the world around us (indeed, many great leaders have), but that the place to begin is within ourselves.


"When I was a young man, I wanted to change the world.  I found it was difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my nation.  When I found I couldn’t change the nation, I began to focus on my town.  I couldn’t change the town and as an older man, I tried to change my family.

"Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself, and suddenly I realize that if long ago I had changed myself, I could have made an impact on my family.  My family and I could have made an impact on our town. Their impact could have changed the nation and I could indeed have changed he world.”

Unknown Monk 1100 AD

Hello all,

I'm planning to attend the MEGA Book Marketing University on March 2-4, which is led by Mark Victor Hansen (author of Chicken Soup for the Soul) - and just found out that there are great deals when multiple people register together by January 30th.

Here's the financial scoop:

1 person - $1,295
2 people - 2nd comes free if register before Jan 30th - that's $647.50 each
3 people - 2nd comes free, and 3rd comes for additional $347.50 - that's $547.50 each

Obviously, the best deal is for 3 people to attend - which is the ideal scene I'm intending to manifest.  PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN MAKING A JOINT REGISTRATION THAT WILL SAVE MONEY AND ALLOW FOR MORE POSSIBILITIES TO PARTICIPATE.

Below is a note from Mark Victor Hansen that includes a couple bullet points about the event itself.  Also, please check out http://www.MegaBookMarketing.com/cmd.php?af=308828 for more detailed information.

The event sounds AMAZING and I'm looking forward to sharing it with my friends!

Lots of love,
Nancy


MEGA BOOK MARKETING UNIVERSITY

• How to really make money while you sleep; internet affiliate deals for your books and products.
  
• What makes a book proposal or manuscript stand out and get read.
• The inside tactics of getting endorsements and endorsed marketing deals.
  
• What publishers and agents wish every author knew; and why knowing it can turn your career around.
  
• The truth about publishing contracts; what to look for and what to avoid.
• What “joint ventures” are, and how to put them together like a pro.
  
• The realities of how a best-seller is made (and yes, they are “made”).
• The tried and true methods of getting articles and features done about you in big-name publications.
  
• How to find and make the most of publicity opportunities.
• How to tap into the little-known (at least for most authors) world of corporate co-ventures.
  
• The most common mistakes made by new authors, and how you can avoid them (are you making any of them now?).
• Licensing arrangements, and what they can mean to your career (and your income!).
  
• Why (and how) distribution deals can “make or break” your book project.
• How to make special sales into non-traditional markets.

Nancy Shuford
Life Coaching & Counseling
http://www.nancyshuford.com
nancy@nancyshuford.com
310/210-4451

Here's an inspiring story.  Enjoy!

Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come to see the daffodils before they are over."

I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead   "I will come next Tuesday", I promised a little reluctantly on her third call.

Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and reluctantly I drove there. When I finally walked into Carolyn's house I was welcomed by the joyful sounds of happy children. I delightedly hugged and greeted my grandchildren.

"Forget the daffodils, Carolyn!  The road is invisible in these clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see badly enough to drive another inch!"

My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time, Mother."

"Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm heading for home!"  I assured her.

"But first we're going to see the daffodils. It's just a few blocks," Carolyn said.  "I'll drive. I'm used to this." 

"Carolyn," I said sternly, "Please turn around."

"It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience."

After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand lettered sign with an arrow that read, " Daffodil Garden."  We got out of the car, each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, as we turned a corner, I looked up and gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight.

It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it over the mountain and its surrounding slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, creamy white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, and saffron and  butter yellow. Each different colored variety was planted in large groups so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers.

"Who did this?" I asked Carolyn.  "Just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's her home." Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A-frame house, small and modestly sitting in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house.

On the patio, we saw a poster. "Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking", was the headline. The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs," it read. The second answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and one brain." The third answer was, "Began in 1958."

For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun, one bulb at a time, to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Planting one bulb at a time, year after year, this unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. One day at a time, she had created something of extraordinary magnificence, beauty, and inspiration. The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration.

That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time--often just one baby-step at time--and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time. When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world .

"It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years? Just think what I might have been able to achieve!"

My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said.

She was right. It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use today?"

Use the Daffodil Principle. Stop waiting.....

Until your car or home is paid off

Until you get a new car or home

Until your kids leave the house

Until you go back to school

Until you finish school

Until you clean the house

Until you organize the garage

Until you clean off your desk


Or, as Goethe so eloquently stated:  "Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now!"