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HAPPY MONDAY! A quick howdy hello to wish you well. Summer has for sure provided us with appropriate weather. I melt a wee little bit. August is just days away, which usually means more heat; and pretty much anymore around here September has hot hot days as well. To the inventors of Air Conditioning, I salute you. I give you my deep thanks. Ditto for ceiling fans. And popsicles. Which reminds me – I have forgotten to name a few joys my last newsletters. Besides the aforem

Happy Hello to you! I’m still enjoying my summer sabbatical-of-sorts. Doing plenty, for sure, but also lots of time of quiet beauty. We celebrate two years at our current Joy House today and we love it so much. This home is not fancy – and perfect for us. I used to love fancy; chandeliers in every room and my favorite color was bling. Now I am French Country floral all the way. Our yard is also simple, full of birds, critters, trees, flowers, and no neighbor squished up again

IT'S ALWAYS OURSELVES WE FIND IN THE SEA. It's always ourselves we are finding everywhere. It's our true great awakening. I keep finding myself in new ways all the time. It's not creating, it's excavating. We shed the crapola that we are not/no longer need to be/never really were and keep finding more of the truth of who we are. Bit by bit by bit. Precious. Whole. Loved. Fully divine. And fully living the human experience. We are here to explore. Express. Expand. In such

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time." —John Lubbock Perhaps you can allow yourself some rest, some stillness, some watching the clouds float across the sky this July. Simple enjoyments. Quiet pleasures. Time without devices. I am still on summer-sabbatical-of-sorts mode. Not wanting too much on the schedule

This, from many years ago, from Clarissa Pinkola Estes: We do not become healers. We came as healers. We are. Some of us are still catching up to what we are. We do not become storytellers. We came as carriers of the stories that we and our ancestors actually lived. We are. Some of us are still catching up to what we are. We do not become artists. We came as artists. We are. Some of us are still catching up to what we are. We do not become writers.. dancers.. musician

Hello!! Just popping in to say a quick HELLO! I am loving the summer mini-hiatus. Our Meditation Mondays are rocking and rolling and wowee wow. We are digging the main floor room. Cozy and sweet. Next Sound Bath is Saturday, June 20 at 9am. You must register in advance. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1990912192963 Three summer reads for you, delightful nonfiction: How to Host A Viking Funeral: The Case for Burning Your Regrets, Chasing Your Crazy Ideas, and Becoming the

These past weeks I have been quiet. On social media. On writing these notes. In making plans. Just being still. A bit of a sabbatical. Partly because of the glorious weather, partly because of the shifting energies, and partly because of the season I am in internally. Life is ever evolving! Our summer schedule at Access Soul reflects that. Wednesday noon and Saturday morning meditations are on hiatus until fall. We still host every Monday at 6:30pm. This past Monday, June 1,

Blessing for Presence by John O'Donohue May you awaken to the mystery of being here And enter the quiet immensity of your own presence. May you have joy and peace in the temple of your senses. May you receive great encouragement when new frontiers beckon. May you respond to the call of your gift And find the courage to follow its path. May warmth of heart keep your presence aflame and anxiety never linger about you. May your outer dignity mirror an inner dignity o

Hi there! Joys lately: · Soft tissues · Soft sheets · Soft jammies You don’t know how much you appreciate super soft tissues until you go through a box of off-brand "Kleenex" in a day. Jim and I were visited by the “common cold” these past several days. Not sick, just a bit under the weather. (SIDENOTE of no importance, the origin of that phrase: Sailors who fell ill were sent below deck to protect them from the elements, literally placing them "under

I wrote this three years ago and glad it found me again today. After each sentence, take a deep inhale and slow exhale before moving on to the next line. Just for today, I believe in magic and miracles. Just for today, I let go of trying to control. Just for today, I operate as if all is well and everything works out for me. Just for today, I breathe, I relax, I trust, I know. Just for today, I release judgment of others and especially myself. Just for today, I ho

Greetings!Life is swirling for me again (always?). This old quote that I have used often in past workshops and blogs feels good to share today. Maybe it’s just for me, but I hope it resonates with you too. "Your life is a sacred journey. It is about change, growth, discovery, movement, transformation, continuously expanding your vision of what is possible, stretching your soul, learning to see clearly and deeply, listening to your intuition, taking courageous challenges a

How many lifetimes can you live in one earthly life? MANY! How much can evolve in fifteen years of marriage? A LOT! May 1, 2011 Jim and I married. May 1, 2026 Happy Anniversary to us! Gratitude overflows. This journey of love and life and the continual evolution of our spiritual growth, individually and together, is a beautiful gift. I could write pages and pages (and I have over the years) about relationship and about the man with many names. ZenMan. Papa. Dad. For me,

I wrote this poem-ish thing a few years back. It popped into my awareness again this week, so perhaps that's a nudge to share it again here. I say a prayer for today That all is calm all is well That peace within is not just on a Sunday That goodwill toward all men is not just a holiday season I say a prayer for today That we all feel the courage to be kind To find compassion That empathy speaks louder than words I say a prayer for today That we open ourselves to our cr

In addition to the welcome of Spring, the fun facts on my Snapple lids brought me joy this week. · Fish cough · Mangoes have noses · It is illegal in New Zealand to name twin babies “Fish” and “Chips” I used to think up silly twin names. Zig and Zag. Lucky and Charm. Rough and Tumble. But alas, no duo babes for me. My sons are 19 months apart so many thought they were twins when they were little -- and yes, I often dressed them alike. They have very norm

What brings YOU joy? I am realizing deeper and deeper and deeper, that joy is the anchor, the guidepost, the constant course-corrector, the pull, the push, the tether, the beacon. Joy is the knowing, the voice within. The indicator that you connected to the eternal flame of you. We are wired to find our flame and fan our flame, but sometimes it seems so out of reach. Or frivolous or even wrong to think about joy. But it’s not. Maybe you feel adrift or on edge. Or perhap

April 1, 2010, sixteen wild years ago, I launched the Happiness Club of Loves Park, IL. I was coaching and doing speaking gigs, presentations and workshops teaching joy and science of happiness. As a member of AATH (Association of Applied and Therapeutic Humor), American Happiness Association and other organizations, I met Lionel Ketchian, a professor in Connecticut, who had created Happiness Clubs. He asked me to start a club in Illinois. So I did. I rented the room at t

From late 2008 until 2021 sometime, I sent an email newsletter, my JOY LETTER, every single Friday. It started when I was life coaching and continued when I morphed into book coaching and kept going when I circled back to spiritual coaching. No matter what my work was, I always sent upbeat inspiration every week. Then I retired. And here I am again. These email missives are not every Friday like clockwork but maybe will become so again, who knows. I just got an email from

"You are literally wired to love fearlessly, express the sacred, and live from your highest human potential so that we can create the best world possible, one where our interconnectedness brings with it peace and the next phase of our collective evolution." ~Steve Farrell

There could be a deep divine meaning to this global dark night, which is to strip us to our depths so that we can rediscover who we really are – both human and divine – and come together in a worldwide, passionate revolution of love in action. ~ANDREW HARVEY Dec 1, 2025 LOVE IN ACTION! That is our goal at Access SOUL. What people need now is to be reminded of what already/has always existed – the peace within. We been hosting meditation and sound baths for years at our hom

STATELINE BUZZ DEC 4, 2025 Something new and super calming is opening in Roscoe this weekend. Access SOUL High Frequency Sanctuary is celebrating its grand opening this Saturday from 1 to 5, with a ribbon-cutting right at 1. If you’ve ever been curious about sound healing, meditation, or just want to step into a peaceful space, this is your chance to check it out/ 11824 MAIN ST Roscoe, IL, United States, Illinois 61073 A new space for relaxation, healing, and community is