Tag Archives: fresh start

The Goodness of Green

Posted on by
“Green is the prime color of the world and that from which its loveliness arises.”
– Pedro Calderón de la Barca
When someone inspires me, it’s a call to action. When a color inspires me it changes my life. I recall a sweet conversation with a darling stranger who shared, “Color is my medicine.” Selecting her attire was a conscious ritual that expressed her quirky personality yet protected her from a world that could often be unkind. Her words struck a chord with me: the colors we adorn our bodies and homes with are profound and meaningful. They affirm our sense of beauty and peace of mind, more so than choosing current color trends.

This brief conversation was especially timely and I could see it mirrored in my March walks along the Ridge. The landscape has been filled with an explosion of luscious greens – emerald, olive, pea, lime, pine and verdigris. Grasses, plants and trees are happily rioting in the warm, spring sun. Nature has indeed replenished the earth. This joy led me to ask, “what is the goodness of green” and “how do we use its goodness in Feng Shui?”

The goodness of green is that it refreshes the body and spirit. It is associated with springtime, a fresh start, vitality and hope. It is a common color in nature – grass, trees and vegetation reflect this color and can help you to feel grounded, creative and calm. Green is easy on the eyes and you can look at it for a long time and not experience eye strain. It lays its verdant, healing vibration upon our spirits in a manner that equalizes, relaxes and balances painful processes.

Will you be turning your attention to a remodel or refresh your house in the coming months? What about painting your bedroom? If you are dealing with depression, the goodness of apple green is that it supports new beginnings. It’s an invitation to take a different path; it inspires hope and encourages possibilities for a better future. Add this secret for the best results: visualize in detail your venture into the unknown while the vitality of green strengthens your resolve to follow through.

Does this economy have you worrying a lot and you can’t seem to shake the feeling? Cheek your front door. Open it, what do you see? Are there dead or unhealthy plants within view? Remove them and your worries may dissolve. Replace the old with new greenery (both inside and outside the door). The goodness of green is your decision making will improve, your next step will be clear and you will feel confident in moving forward.

Did you daydream when you were a child? Do you still want to step out of your body so you don’t have to dealt with adult matters? The goodness of green is that it can influence your inner state and give you hope that a fresh start is around the corner. Wearing the color green is grounding like a tall tree that draws the vital essence of the earth up through its roots into its branches and leaves. Its essence infuses your spirit with a sense of aliveness, abundance and focused energy.

Plants are all too happy to share their abundant life force. They thrive in groups. The goodness of green in the bedroom is they revitalize your Ch’i. If you place nine (representing longevity, completion and peak accomplishment) green plants in the master bedroom, this BTSB Feng Shui adjustment will lend ardor in your intimate moments with your beloved.

Green orchids bring extra blessings and luck to friends and family. Sending them is a powerful good deed as they are a symbol of good fortune, good health and longevity. The Japanese culture employs the goodness of green by displaying a green orchid in the home or office. It is believed to bring good fortune into one’s life and career.

Bamboo has a long and humble connection to the Chinese culture. The drooping bamboo leaves cross one another, as if they are composing the Chinese character “An” (tranquility). Being both hollow and soft inside, it symbolizes humility (the Chinese word for hollow means to be humble) which allows it to bow in the wind. The goodness of this green tree is that it provides peace and can drive away negative influences so it will protect you. If you wish to have money and work peacefully for it, hang a bamboo drape in the Wealth/Hsun gua (far left back corner) of your home.

Do you want to enhance what is already a good relationship with your home, family, your job or partner? I would be happy to help you with your place. I am available my signature offering, Your House Is Talking, full consultation service as well as the Feng Shui A La Carte. I look forward to talking to you soon! 503-232-2543 or bette@shenmenfengshui.com.

What I have discovered about our homes is that creating a heart healthy space leads to peace and contentment. The bedroom is where it begins. Start with my complimentary pdf: 27 Bedroom Concepts To Maximize Your Health, Happiness and Peace of Mind. Design your space to your best advantage. Subscribe to my blog and special offers. You’ll receive this valuable Feng Shui Guide as a thank you gift.

A Spring Ritual To Revive The Front Door

Posted on by
“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”
– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
In the Pacific Northwest Spring arrives with undeniably glory. Cherry blossoms kiss the sky with their clouds of pink. Sunny daffodils dance among the tulips while hyacinth perfume the air. Earth’s life force is abundant everywhere. Spring seems to be saying: start fresh, life is limitless,  welcome possibilities.

How do we step into the rhythm of this abundance? Nearly every culture with deep roots has a Spring ritual for the home. The door is the threshold between one’s inner sanctum and the outer environment which gives it the distinction of  symbolizing new beginnings. The Spring ritual (Door Washing Charm with the description below) harmonizes and protects the loving energy of the hearth and home. When performing the Spring ritual, a spiritual space unfolds that encourages focus whereby one’s intentions can sflow. The use of the fragrance of orange is part of my Feng Shui tradition so this Spring ritual from the Goddess and the Green Man perfectly dovetails with the teachings I share.

This simple charm helps to safeguard the home and boost harmonious energies within. And who knows it might be a magical gift for your visitors too.

Materials

3 drops of orange essential oil. It invites good fortune, happiness and contentment.
2 drops of clove essential oil. Clove oil encourages courage and protection.
2 drops of lime essential oil for purification and love
Hot water
A white cloth
A bowl or bucket

Procedure

Place all the essential oils into your bowl and pour hot water over them. When the water has cooled stir well in a clockwise fashion. Next take your cloth and gently wipe your door starting in the center, work outwards in a clockwise movement. While you are doing this, say three times (either out loud or silently): “I protect this home and shield all within. Love, peace and harmony, I call you in…”

When you have completed the ritual, wring your cloth out under running water, dry it thoroughly and keep it for future cleansing. Where it is safe, pour your water outside. Feel the love and joy of spring.

Happy Spring

Allow me to help you arrange your home where you feel fully supported. I am available for a full consultation service or for an hour telephone conversation. Details are at this link Feng Shui A La Carte. Think of it as a fairy godmother for your house.
What I have discovered about our homes is that creating a heart healthy space leads to peace and contentment. The bedroom is where it begins. Start with my complimentary pdf: 27 Bedroom Concepts To Maximize Your Health, Happiness and Peace of Mind. Design your space to your best advantage. Subscribe to my blog and special offers. You’ll receive this valuable Feng Shui Guide as a thank you gift.

Photo credit: Pexels

Feng Shui Acts of Beauty

Posted on by

Beautiful are those whose brokeness gives birth to transformation and wisdom.
– John Mark Green

Stress is no longer the by-product of a busy life, it’s a 24/7 affair. If you’re feeling it’s a life sentence you have the power to turn this around with a lifestyle change. Feng Shui acts of beauty create a stress free zone that allow only the good stuff in where the possibilities for something extraordinary can happen. In this blog I shed light on how design decorates our emotions in our partnerships and offer solutions that suggest a “transformational power where this power changes the feelings in our bodies” and links us to positive change in our relationships and the world.

Feng Shui Acts of Beauty
We may not see beauty as functional however it has a very important function. Creating acts of beauty eases our suffering. For couples whose love has gone sour it refreshes their relationship. It’s effective in softening conflictive opinions in the house when partners are at odds.

Pillow Talk
Minimize arguing by placing a mirror on the wall at the head of the bed. The nuance: hanging a round mirror invites soft words between partners.

Pear for a Pair
Let Nature help! If you and your partner cannot share–life, bank accounts, whatever it is, plant a pear tree in the yard. Pear in Chinese sounds like partnership, it symbolizes the act of sharing. 

Stairway to Happiness
A stairway in the middle of the house can magnify differing of opinions. It’s not just health issues that slip and slide but opposing viewpoints. Solution is a Feng Shui act of beauty: hang a 50 mm crystal ball at the top of the stairs to lift the Ch’i of the fluctuating energy and lift your hearts.

Fresh Starts
If vitality is lacking in the bedroom, add the color green, place flutes above the bed at the angle of Wealth and Partnership or use plants with flowers and fruit in the bedroom. A plant that bears fruit means that the growth of the plant has seen results and your efforts will bear fruit. Flutes have an uprising force so you are taking the next step (www.yunlintemple.org). Green is associated with springtime, a fresh start, vitality and hope. It is a prevalent color in nature from grass and trees to vegetation. You can look at green for a long time and not experience eye strain. Purchase sheets, a duvet cover or curtains or all three.

Partnership Perplexity
If your partner speaks their mind and you choke on your words. If you cannot cannot speak up when you have relationship troubles, purchase the Yundrung necklace from the Yun Lin Temple in Berkeley, California. The thunderbolt releases “Choked Ch’i”.

Fire Danger
Is love is simmering outside and your partner is cooking in someone else’s kitchen? A fireplace in the center can be the suspect. Add water like a mirror (above the fireplace) to put out the fire or place water in a jug close to the fireplace. Be sure to keep it fresh and do not let it evaporate.

Love Chimes
Has your partnership gotten to the place where one of you is holding back and now you are feuding? Try an act of beauty with sound. Placing a wind chime in the house can help get the reverberation of conflict and dissonance out of your systems.

For our mental health and emotional well-being we really can no longer afford to bring more stress into our lives. If this blog has triggered an avalanche of emotions, if you are curious about more acts of beauty for you home, I am available to help you with either a full consultation or an hour telephone conversation, Feng Shui A La Carte. Think of it as a fairy godmother for your house.

What I have discovered about our homes is that creating a heart healthy space leads to peace and contentment. The bedroom is where it begins. Start with my complimentary pdf: 27 Bedroom Concepts To Maximize Your Health, Happiness and Peace of Mind. Design your space to your best advantage. Subscribe to my blog and special offers. You’ll receive this valuable Feng Shui Guide as a thank you gift.

Photo credit: House Beautiful