To live a well balanced, rewarding life of our dreams by day and sleep restfully at night.
If this one thing happened today, it would be a successful day! A journal writing exercise for the morning
Published July 11, 2011 | 
This morning as you are waking up, write a question in your journal:
“If this one thing happened today it would be a successful day today”.
Then just sit for a while. Sip on your coffee or tea. Meditate. Stretch. Breathe.
When you are ready, go back to your journal and write down the answer to your question.
What comes out will be your intuition; that wise voice that is always there inside, waiting for you to listen.
When the answer comes out you will know where and how to focus your energy.
Have a blessed day,
Debra
Related Posts:
What is nudging you right now? A journal writing exercise
Published April 4, 2011 | 
What is nudging you right now? What gentle, quiet messages are stirring within you? Tonight, spend sometime being quiet. Take a bath. Sit and meditate. Do some simple stretches. When you are ready, get out your journal. Sit up straight. Place your journal on your lap and ask yourself, “what is nudging me? What is resonating with me right now?”. Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Sit and be quiet as long as you want.
When you are ready, open your eyes and your journal- take one more deep breath and begin to write….
I am doing this exercise tonight as well. Let’s see…
What is nudging me? What currently resonates with me?
1. I love my job.
2. I appreciate the quiet when I am home from my job.
3. I feel the need to specialize and focus on less: fewer projects, fewer ideas, etc. I often have so many ideas with my creative energy and then I tend to either spread myself too thin or not carry through with all of my endeavors. Less is more.
4. Love. I am blessed with love in my life all over the place! I am so fortunate!
5. Life is precious. I do not want to waste a day on negativity and stuff that doesn’t matter.
Your turn, Dear Warm Milk Journal reader….
Goodnight,
Debra : )
Related Posts:
Meditations for this winter evening
Published December 8, 2010 | 
1. Candle Meditation
I like to do this one when I am in the bathtub or in my bedroom. Light a candle and dim the lights. Sit upright and with a soft gaze focus on the light of the flame.
Breathe. Keep gazing and don’t think about anything in particular. If you find your mind wanting to wander, breathe, and continue to focus on the flame.
2. Colors of the rainbow meditation
This is a great one to do if you don’t have much time. It is a very restorative practice. Sit in your relaxed position. Close your eyes. Breathe. Visualize one by one the colors of the rainbow and form an image of an object or scene that represents that color. For example, RED - a deep red rose or red delicouse apple… ORANGE- a slice of an orange or a bright marigold flower, YELLOW- a banana or daffodil flowers, GREEN- peas or a field of grass, BLUE- the color of the ocean in a tropical locale or the sky, indigo- inner layer of a fire flame, and violet- flowers or burgundy wine.
3. Listening To The Silence.
This meditation comes from Meditations with James Van Praagh:
The times just after waking or just before sleeping are times whenour minds are most susceptible to suggestion. This is a good meditation to do just before going to sleep. Be sure to sit up straight. Have your journal nearby. As you inhale imagine the oxygen molecules entering your body with their healing energy. As you exhale, release all of the stagnant energy that you have accumulated during the day.
As you sit, focus on your breathing. Write down any thoughts that come to mind. If a person comes to mind write his or her name. When no thoughts come, enjoy the silence. When a thought arises, jot it down.
When you have finished review what you have written and compare your words from when you started the exercise to what you wrote at the end. By the end of your meditation your mind may have been clear and uncluttered enough to give you some important insight about something or ideas that you can follow through with.
I use this type of exercise when I am in need of guidance or clarity about something. I believe our intuitionor inner voice has much wisdom if we can be still and quiet long enough to listen.
4. A simple meditation from the joy of meditation by Jack and Corneila Addington:
Meditate on the thought: ” I love the life of God within me”.
In Peace,
Debra
Related Posts:
Posted in journal writing, Meditations, Uncategorized | 
candle, clarity, colors of rainbow, intuition, journal, Meditations, peace | 
Leave a commentMorning journal writing session
Published September 28, 2010 | 
One gift we can give ourselves is the gift of being quiet and still. Just be. If we can get and stay in that peaceful place even for a few minutes, it will have a positive effect on our day.
This morning, before the busy-ness of the day begins, grant yourself this time. This is a great time to write in our journals. When we get quiet and listen: listen to our own hearts, our own intuition, God, the universe etc. – it can be amazing what surfaces.
Here are a few ideas for your journal writing this morning:
- Who in your life loves you and supports you unconditionally? Write their names down. As you write their names send love and gratitude their way.
- If there is someone in your life who is challenging you or you are worried about, write their names down. As you write their names send love and healing thoughts their way. These people need your blessings more than anybody.
- Think of people who are successful in their lives. What makes them successful? Write these names down and their successful qualities. Can one of these people serve as a mentor to you?
Be sure to breathe and set a positive intention for your day.
Have a great one!
Debra : )
Related Posts:
Being in the flow brings purpose, peace, and confidence. 7 ways to get in the flow.
Published September 8, 2010 | 
There are times when you are just in “the flow” : you are focused, you are doing a task that has meaning for you or you are good at, and you are just immersed in the activity. This kind of activity is really good for us. It helps our confidence, time passes quickly, and we are at our ease.
When we are not in the flow we are either struggling or bored. Being in the flow brings optimal balance and energy.
Here are seven ideas to be in the flow more often:
- Play and work to your strengths. Do things that you are good at. This will increase your confidence and satisfaction in life. People will appreciate your particular talents and abilities and seek you out when in need of what you have to offer.
- Do what you are interested in. There is nothing like passion to galvanize our energy and efforts. Use your passion!
- Know what is important to you. Say yes to what you want to and no to all else. We only have so much time and energy in any given day. Spreading yourself thin by over committing yourself to things you don’t care that much about does not serve you or others. Focus and commit to what really matters. Excel. Excellence is a great boost to self esteem. You won’t regret spending your time on what’s important.
- Remove distractions. Multitasking is for the birds in my opinion. Our brains focus best on one thing at a time. So when you are doing something, put your all into it. It is interesting that once you are really in the flow of your task, you are not easily distracted. Your focus and attention is so laser sharp during those times.
- Relax. Sometimes we do our best work and concentrate better when the pressure is off us. Then, voila! We are suddenly capable of so much. If you try to push the boulder up the hill, however, good luck. Pressure, stress, and drudgery does not put one in the flow.
- Nurture your creative spirit. Do things that nurture your creativity: write, paint, draw, move your body, try new hobbies. Using the creative parts of our brains opens so much up that otherwise remains hidden, repressed, or bottled up.
- Nurture you spirituality. That inner voice and intuition can lead you to activities that put you in the flow. Be present. Be still. Be quiet. Listen.
Debra : )
Related Posts:
Posted in Good Health, Self-empowerment, Spirituality | focus, in the flow, intuition, passion purpose, self confidence | Leave a commentWhat inspires you?
Published September 3, 2010 | 
When you are writing in your journal tonight or meditating or taking your walk, consider what inspires you. When are the times that something within you just lights up? Focusing on inspiration really puts us in touch with the good stuff: the things that matter and bring us to life and serve ours and the world’s greater good…
Perhaps write a list of things, people, or times that pop into your mind when you have been inspired.
For example, this would be my current “inspiration list”:
- When I am not thinking about anything in particular but then something just “hits” me. A light bulb turns on out of seemingly nowhere…
- Photographs, images will inspire me
- People: particularly kind, loving, selfless acts from others or a beautiful smile or gentle touch
- My young students (I am a second grade teacher)
- Nature and animals
- Books and blogs
- Newspaper or magazine articles
- An energy that wells up within me and nudges me to be my best, live my best life
- My friends and family
- Walks on the beach
- Moonlight
- Poetry and literature
You never know when you will get your next inspiration. Be open to inspirational sources. They are all around you.
Debra 
Related Posts:
What if you don’t know what you want? A journal writing session.
Published August 31, 2010 | 
If you don’t know what you want how are you going to live the life you were meant to live? It is important to get clear about what you want. For many of us though, that is not always obvious.
If you are not sure about the path you are on or you are not content with some areas in your life, you need to get some direction.
Journal writing can really help with this. When we write, we are tapping into that special voice we all have within us: intuitive, wise, connected to the divine.
Tonight before bed, take a little time for yourself: take a bath, listen to some relaxing music, meditate, etc.
Then when you are centered, get your journal and ask that voice some questions:
- What do I want to do? List as many active verbs that come to mind (example: teach, write, study, heal others, etc.)
- Who do I want to be? List as many adjectives that come to mind (example: prosperous, generous, loving, hardworking, ethical, relaxed, forgiving, etc.)
- Where do I want to go? List as many places as you can think of (Europe, the Napa Valley, Hawaii, etc.)
- If failure was not possible, what would you jump at the chance of doing immediately?
- If financial resources were limitless, how would you spend your time?
- If you died, what would you want people to say about you at your funeral?
Set your journal aside on your bedside table. If after this writing session you still feel unsure about your life, take a deep breath. Ask for guidance. Go to sleep. If you wake up in the middle of the night or in the morning your journal will be nearby when that voice is speaking and you are ready to listen…
Sweet dreams
Debra : )
Related Posts:
Writing a story in my mind
Published April 9, 2010 | Something that has helped me fall back asleep during restless, sleepless nights is thinking of a story I want to write.
I think of the setting, characters, plot development, etc. I think of as many details as possible as I lie there in my bed. Before I know it, I have fallen back asleep. Perhaps this works because it got my mind off my worries or the fact that I was not sleeping.
We can use our journals to write down these ideas as well- and, who knows? We may have some great ideas there for some future stories to write. I often think when we are in that semiconscious state our minds are often more creative, more intuitive, and more spiritual.
Another thing I might do when I am in this semi-asleep, semi-awake state is tap into my dream world. Sometimes I can bring up dreams I had many years ago! When I do this, I enjoy the images and then fall back into a nice sleep.
Related Posts:
Posted in Meditations, Self-empowerment, Tips to help insomnia | dreams, insomnia, intuition, writing | Leave a comment 
Copyright © 2013 - The Warm Milk Journal. All Rights Reserved. 