Hats off to Go Native America!

Having spent the last few weeks organising and re-organising our independent trip to the mid-West next week, I feel I must take my hat off to Sarah Chapman of Go Native America. Sarah organises, with precision, multiple and varied trips each year during which their tour participants travel thousands of miles across the country visiting sacred sites and learning the history of the Native American people from award-winning writer, photographer and historian Serle Chapman. The first time I took a tour with Go Native America, (www.gonativeamerica.com) we travelled 3,500 miles in two weeks through the scenery of North and South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana. It was another four years before I could return for another ten days to South Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska and Montana. The scenery is awesome and Serle's narration of Native American history is exciting, respectful, tender and at times heart-breaking. I had no idea, however, how time-consuming it is to organise such a tour, even on a small scale.

I will be returning next week to the mid-West with my husband and dearest friends - the trip is a birthday present for my husband's 60th and I have just discovered he is telling people that this trip is an "hors d'oeuvre" - a taste of things to come once he has retired! I have booked us into a different hotel each night and we will be travelling through the Badlands and up into the Big Horn mountains, where I am told that the snow is half-way up the lodge windows!! Packing is a nightmare but layers are the answer - lots of them!

On Wednesday next week we travel to the Land of the Morning Star People to meet the little girl who I have sponsored on the Northern Cheyenne reservation through the Cheyenne Children's Services at Lame Deer who assist children from infant to age 18. We are all really excited about our visit and already we have a queue of children here who would like to be her penfriend. "Many children on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation face the daily reality of poverty. Unlike previous generations, today's poverty is not just economic; complications by broken families, alcohol, drug abuse and limited opportunities contribute to the vicious cycle of child poverty." (Florence Running Wolf - Founder/Director CCS) The unemployment rate for the area is 80% and the best chance of finding a job is off the reservation in Billings, Montana - over 100 miles away. The child I have sponsored has four siblings and family income is the equivalent of £6,000 per year! The rugged terrain in the area severely limits its agricultural use and the most productive land was given to non-Indians by the US Government long ago.

Due to the work of the CCS, the Cheyenne children now have a library in the largest district - something they have never had before and they are slowly developing a stock of books. With future donations, they hope it will be possible to train and employ a full-time librarian. If you would like more information about the CCS or are interested in sponsoring a child and/or making a one-off donation, please log on to http://www.cheyennechildrenservices.com/ . As Florence would say "HaHo" Thank you!

Having organised this independent one-week trip down to the finest detail, if you are interested in travelling to the area, I have one thing to say........."Go Native America" - it's much easier and much less of a worry!

The photo above was taken in October in Tongue River Canyon - click on it for a full-size version - did you ever see such a beautiful blue sky?

NEW DIVINITI WEBSITE FOR THE U.S.

I'm thrilled to have learned this week that Diviniti Publishing now have a website especially for their many United States customers. From this week, people in the US will be able to purchase the whole Diviniti range in dollars rather than having to order in pound sterling on the UK site. A much better option for our US friends given the recent poor exchange rate!

If you have any friends in the States who are interested in connecting with Angels, the Sacred Light Series of 4 CDs is being sold as a package at a special discount. Check out the website at

www.hypnosis-usa.com.

FAMILY HOMEOPATHY & WELLNESS CLINIC

Those of you with families may like to know that one of my dearest friends, Kimberley Gridley, has now started a new Family Homeopathy & Wellness Clinic based in Knockholt, Kent. Kimberley has been a licensed Homeopath for many years, graduating from the London College of Practical Homeopathy in 1998. She is an international speaker and trainer with a vast knowledge of homeopathy and nutrition.

Kimberley's clinic will offer safe, effective treatments for children's immune support, food intolerances, eczema, asthma etc and also all women's complaints from monthly cycles to weight loss.

To speak to Kimberley or to book an appointment please call her on 01959 535060. She is offering a £5.00 reduction for NCT Members.

IF I WERE PRIME MINISTER

GMTV have been asking people for suggestions for a new Public Holiday. Viewers have been asked to vote for one of the following: a) A British Forces Day b) A Beatles Day c) A Shakespeare Day and d) a Diana Day.


I say, what about a PEACE DAY. I think the UN nominated September 21st as International Peace Day but how many of us are aware of that?

I did think about a PEACE PILGRIM day in honour of the amazing woman who walked 25,000 miles between 1953 and 1981 in a personal pilgrimage for peace. She vowed to "remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food". She died aged 73 in 1981. However, this is a UK Public Holiday they are polling for, so people might not consider this appropriate.

So, if I was Prime Minister this would be my suggestion: June 21st would be a great day for PEACE DAY. It is summer solstice, therefore the longest day of the year and would be a great day for families and friends to be together. Everything would close! No banks, shops, shopping malls would be allowed to open, and people would be encouraged to stay home and keep traffic to a minimum. In the lead up to Peace Day, school children will be encouraged to participate in creative projects - ALL children should be encouraged to make a PEACE DREAMBOARD showing their vision of a Peaceful World. Peace DreamBoard exhibitions could be set up in various prominent locations for everyone to see and we could even have a prize for the best Peace Dreamboard in each County. Just think of the effect of millions of Dreams of Peace on the Laws of Attraction. In fact why limit the PEACE DREAMBOARD to children? Everyone, regardless of race, religion or age could be encouraged to make one. We could have Children's Peace Concerts, Celebrations of Light etc. It's our responsibility to show our children how the Laws of Attraction work and how they can make a difference to their world if they focus on Peace.

What a dreamer I am....................but then a PEACE DAY makes much more sense to me than a Beatles Day - even though, as a 13 year old I dreamed of marrying Paul McCartney. Maybe if I'd made a DreamBoard.....................!

DreamBoards DO work - honestly!!!

I am SO excited - I did say Mato Tipila has been calling to me and I have now responded! My husband, who never takes longer than 5 days holiday, has a "big" birthday next year and I have booked to take him to South Dakota and Wyoming. I have a slightly guilty feeling about this, because I know he wanted to go to Las Vegas, but I think Wyoming will be much better for his spiritual (and physical) health! I was trying to keep it a secret but I am so excited I had to tell him and, thankfully he is thrilled - even though he has to take a whole week off. Also, to my great surprise, he arrived home tonight and has decided we are going to fly to Las Vegas later in the year. To my even greater surprise, we are flying Business Class - this is the man that insists on flying EasyJet and Ryanair normally. Not wanting to give him a chance to change his mind - I booked it immediately and he is still in shock. If you are sceptical about DreamBoards, don't be. I suddenly remembered my very first DreamBoard has a photo of Las Vegas on it, with a request for my husband to take more than three days holiday at a time. The Laws of Attraction are just fabulous. Honestly.

The next DreamBoard Workshop is on Saturday, January 12th - join me - the world is your oyster.

Be kind to Magpies

I am sitting here in my office - as I have been since I arrived back from America or so it seems. This is such a busy time for everyone, including me and like a lot of women, I am wearing umpteen different hats at a time scheduling next Spring's workshops, preparing for the Cambridge Mind Body Spirit Exhibition on the 1st/2nd December, and working with my wonderful new website designer to re-build my website. My only daytime company are the magpies who play and entertain me just outside my office window as I work. So many people moan about magpies, including my husband but I don't mind them at all, especially since I know the story.......

It is said in the sacred stories of the Lakota that all the animals and birds of the universe gathered at the Black Hills to run a race that would decide who would thrive and who would struggle. The two-legged animals raced with the birds on one side and the four-legged were on the other. If the two-legged and the birds won the race, they would eat the four-legged but if the four-legged won the race, they would eat the two-legged and the birds. During the race, a magpie perched on the ear of a buffalo and stayed there and just when it looked like the buffalo was in the lead and about to win, the magpie suddenly flew off his ear and won the race on behalf of the two-legged and the birds. The magpie was officially declared the winner and was presented with a rainbow - which is why the magpie's tail is today so colourful.

So next time you look out of your window and see magpies, think of this story and be kind to them - please.

The photograph above is one I took at Mato Tipila (Bears Lodge) in Wyoming and it is SO calling me back. If you click on the photo, you can see it full size - it really is surreal.

Home Again

Home again and I think I'm over my jetlag, I am still trying to remember everything about the last few days of my trip. The days were long and we were out late in the evening, listening to stories under the stars. This photograph was taken on our last day in Tongue River Canyon, Crazy Horse's place of retreat. It took our breath away as we entered on foot - the colours were just as you see them here. I have been assigned by my new friends to do the "Winter Count" which was the Native American way to record tribal events (in pictographs) during the year. Apologies, my friends, for the delay in completing this record - it will be done once I have cleared my backlog of work.

I had the most wonderful time in America and my thanks go to Serle, Sarah, Tashiya, Gail, Nerry, Maggie, Al, Debra, Paul and Devan for their companionship during the trip. We shared much laughter, many poignant moments and even more tears, in particular at Wounded Knee and we have all pledged to do all we can to help raise awareness of the Native American people who care more about their responsibility to each other, our planet and to our future generations than their rights for themselves. There are lessons to be learned from these warm and wonderful people and I hope to write about them in more detail soon.

Tongue River Canyon

From left, Jan, Neree, Gail, Devan, Paul, Debra

and Al. (Maggie was hiding behind Devan)