December 2005, Issue No. 36 ~ Songs and Hopes for Peace & Joy

Every December, Maria, Ken and I travel to New York City for the annual "Cousin's Holiday Party" off Houston Street. This side of the family has many gifted singers and musicians so these parties are very lively and quickly take on a life of their own. While I don't consider myself to be a great singer, I again found myself singing out "Oh Holy Night" with conviction. In the age of iPods, gathering around a piano to sing Christmas carols seems like such an old fashion idea… but oh, the joy it brings.

December seems like a fitting time to launch our NEW bonus gifts section. Now with any S-HE course purchase, you will receive over 12 bonus gifts! Do check out the gift items (details below) authored by our wonderful course instructors.

On a more somber note, we send out love and light to those of you who might find getting through this holiday season a challenge. We hope some of the articles below will be of support and we invite you to consider enrolling in one of our healing courses as a gift to yourself this month - or as a thoughtful gift for a loved one.


Blessings for the holi-days,



June Cook
Self-Healing Expressions (S-HE)

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Moving Forward in the New Year By Laura Grace Day by day, moment by moment, our future beckons us to follow the path of our greatest joy, happiness and grace. Yet sometimes moving forward and beginning anew seems hard. Resistance surfaces and it feels like it takes everything we've got just to take a mere baby step. And then at other times, moving forward feels exciting and new, as though we're on some meaningful adventure. The former occurs when we believe that we're alone and... Read on. Laura Grace is the instructor for the course Dreams for Healing: Using Dreams as a Pathway to the Soul. Learn more and enjoy a short audio message by Laura here.

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Things That Make You Go Ommm. . .

NEW: Get these BONUS GIFTS with your next course Purchase!
Soup Recipes: To Warm the Heart and Soul (ebook)
Online Dream Journal
Creating Your Power Song for Healing (ebook)
Manifesting the Perfect Date (ebook)
Downloadable Bagua Map
Explaining the Funeral / Memorial Service to Your Children (ebook)
Life Purpose: Creating Your Joy List (downloadable form)
Downloadable Healing Contract
Laughter Corner (Interactive Web Tool)
And more! Details here.

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Holiday Blues: Solutions for Spiritual Singles by Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway The holiday season can stir feelings of loneliness and yearning for singles. With all the emphasis on gift giving and gathering with loved ones, you become acutely aware that you've no special someone of your own to share these special days with. But rather than lament the absence of your soul mate, acknowledge these feelings and the strong drive and desire to be with a person who is the "love of your life." Recognize this as a cue from the Universe that your soul mate is getting closer. These creative and spiritual solutions can help you celebrate this holiday season and prepare for love... (Read on) Rev. Laurie Sue is creator and instructor of Finding Your Spiritual Soul Mate: Transforming Your Romantic Destiny with A Romantic Resumé.

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Including Your Absent Loved One in Family Celebrations by Marty Tousley

Holidays and special days can be especially difficult for those coming to terms with the absence of a loved one. Even if you wish to pretend otherwise, the person who died will be on your mind -- and on the minds of others -- on special days such as holidays, birthdays and anniversaries. Far better to create a time, a ritual or a ceremony that recognizes your loss and allows the expression of grief. Whether it's with... (Read on) Marty Tousley is the instructor of The First Year of Grief: Help for the Journey and A Different Grief: Coping with Pet Loss.

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A New Year's Cocktail: Trust Mixed with Love By Arthur Soissons-Segal, Ph.D. ~ Therapist and Brain Tumor Survivor

For those coping with dis-ease, Holidays can be difficult when you think back on all the abilities you had in the past. During the holiday season, I think of all the abilities I could develop in the next twelve months. I dwell on these thought until New Year's Day. On that day, I vow to... (Read on) Arthur Soissons-Segal is the instructor of the course The Joy Of Coping: Overcoming The Stress of Dis-ease.

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JUICE: A Recipe to Start Your Day Right By Deborah Redfern Part of my personal feng shui ritual includes spending time at the beginning of the day in activities that help me feel more balanced and whole. When you take care of yourself in this way, you will feel more healthy and balanced. It will give you more energy, clarity, insight and inspiration... (Read on and find ritual here) Deborah is a certified Practitioner and Master Teacher of Interior Alignment©. She is the creator and instructor of Healing with Feng Shui and Color. Learn how to use feng shui and colors for healing.

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Here's What You're Saying About Our Courses...

"This course is very spiritual in a non-specific religion. This course is very insightful and has helped me through a difficult time in my life. I am newly married in a marriage that is not going too well, I moved out of state and my dog was very ill. I had lost a lot of faith and just felt very discouraged. This course has given me tools to deal with all of these challenges as well as wonderful links to other sites and suggested books to read." ~ Michelle D., Wyoming ( Holistic Prayers course)


"I was anticipating losing my sweet baby girl. She was diagnosis with liver failure in September. Thanks to many wonderful veterinarians and the staff at CSU, she is still with me 3 months later. She is happy and loving life, still at the age of 10 ½ with a tumor still inside her, I found this course very comforting and helpful in allowing me to make peace with the inevitable". ~ Michelle D., Wyoming ( Pet Loss course)


"As the title suggests, Melanie Votaw's Life Purpose Course is designed to give participants the tools to discover their purpose in life, a tall order to begin with. As a psychotherapist who has attended many such courses, initially I was skeptical. I am happy to say, I was wrong. In fact, my experience had such a profound effect on my life, I felt compelled to share it with others. Not only does the course deliver what it promises, it offers far, far more: It's really a journey of self-discovery. Melanie never preaches or tells you what to do but rather gives practical exercises, which prompted me to go deeper within myself, learn more about who I am, and, in turn, about what I truly want out of life (and how to get it, I might add)." ~ Claudia Miles, Therapist, New York, NY ( Life Purpose course)


"The course has helped my awareness open up, by reviewing the 'old' Lord's Prayer of my youth in a 'new' light and with a 'new' life. It is a fresh breath of air for me." ~ Gilbert B. Smith, Louisiana ( Aramaic Lord's Prayer course)

Thanks for Writing! Find our full course catalog here.

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This Month's Healing Recipe: Ginger Tea If you've a common cold, flu, headache, or upset stomach, sip some ginger tea for healing. An easy recipe: cut a ¾-inch piece of fresh ginger root. Peel the brown skin off and chop. Steep a teaspoon of chopped ginger root in a cup of boiling water then sip. You can also drink this healing tea before a trip to avoid motion sickness, or sip to calm a queasy stomach or menstrual cramps. Ginger has many healing properties including anti-inflammatory properties that are said to lessen the pain of rheumatoid arthritis. To your health! Take steps towards strengthening your immune system. Enroll in The Healing Power of Food: Conscious Eating by Julianne Koritz, a registered, licensed dietitian. Course features printable recipes like above!

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Write A Way: Spiritual Writing By Sandra Lee Schubert

The holiday season brings with it the rush of parties, shopping and vacations. Many of us look forward to this time of year for its festive air. The sting of winter can be thwarted when you enter into a store or home with music and decorations that capture the eye. But the one thing that can get lost in all of the hobnob is the spiritual aspect of the season. When we get lost and want to go back to the original roots of the season, we can turn to books for our inspiration. Writing on things spiritual can be tricky. There are all kinds of... (Read on) Sandra Schubert is the instructor for the course Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS


Enter our Fall Writing Contest!
Entry Deadline: December 21, 2005
Using your amazing power of creativity, choose from one of the three photos provided to spark your creative juices. Then write a short story (400 to 1000 words). What would happen if you were to walk into the photo and into one of these places? Be wildly inventive; create characters, a plot line. Have fun creating an adventure... and take us along for the ride. Grand Prize: Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own.

We appreciate your feedback!
If you've taken one (or more) of our courses, we would be sooo grateful for your feedback! You can use this easy online course survey form.

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This Month's Holistic Prayers

We are one, with the infinite Sun, forever and ever and ever.
~ Yuletide Chant, Native American (adapted)


   


The earth is full of your goodness,
your greatness and understanding,
your wisdom and harmony.
How wonderful are the lights that you created.
You formed them with strength and power
and they shine very wonderfully on the world,
magnificent in their splendor.
They arise in radiance and go down in joy.
Reverently they fulfill your divine will.
They are tributes to your name
as they exalt your sovereign rule in song.
~ Ancient Jewish mystical hymn



   


A very Merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear...
War is over, if you want it
War is over now
~ John Lennon (10/9/40 - 12/8/80)

Peace, Love and Light,

Your Friends at Self-Healing Expressions



Disclaimer

About Self-Healing Expressions

Self-Healing Expressions Self-Healing Expressions provides self-paced email courses on holistic topics. Site features guided meditation and healing prayers. Course topics include Dreams for Healing, Romantic Resumé, Grief Healing, Pet Loss, Nutrition, Laugh Therapy, Healing the Earth, More Power to You and more. Its popular (free) Holistic Prayers email course contains interfaith prayers, worldwide prayer vigil announcements and inspiring quotes.