Healthy Happy Loving Life: 4 Top Tips to Shake Off a Bad Mood

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Do you ever find yourself in a bad mood, and you’re just waiting for it to go away? And maybe you’re making mistakes with people because you’re cranky? Well, no need to wait any more for that mood to go away on its own. Here are 4 of my fastest tips for shaking it off. Enjoy and report!

Literally shake it off: place your tongue at the side of your mouth, and shake your body from the shoulders down. Pretend you are a scarecrow in a gusting stiff breeze. In 3 minutes, notice you are feeling completely different– energized and ready– for what is up to you.
Drink a coffee: the polyphenolic compounds in coffee will literally give your cells a lift. Plus, coffee tastes good. Put your feet up, sip your coffee, and in 20 minutes, your mood will have cleared.
Do silly: Like the Ministry of Silly Walks from Monty Python, you can use silliness to evaporate a bad mood. Look for the 2-minute Norwegian YouTube video, where someone has put up an official sign mandating Silly Walks in a crosswalk. Everyone is trying to walk in a silly way, and everyone is laughing, including the mayor.
Remember who is in charge of your day: YOU. Stand up, make the decision that you are making it a great day, and take a symbolic step forward

And that’s you, much more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Kebba Buckley Button, MS, OM, is an energy transformation expert, holistic healer and guide, and award-winning author who celebrates life. She has a longtime energy healing practice and is an ordained minister. Among her books are: Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br), Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire, and Sacred Meditation: Embracing the Divine. The books are available on Amazon and through Kebba’s office. To email us, kebba@kebba.com .

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Sounds to Bring Calm

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Calm, Effective living, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, stress, The life you want

This week, I have been offering simple, easy-to-remember ways to move into CALM. I have described the use of a powerful exhale, multiword mantras, using calming sights, holding finger poses, and posting signs. Today, we cover some ways to use sound to bring calm. I invite you to experiment with the different types and effects of sound, to find out which work best for you. Find a comfy chair, inside or outside, and really give each of these a try, for 10-30 minutes– or more.

Toning. Pick a tone that comes to you and hum it with your mouth closed. Notice your shoulders dropping and relaxation running down your spine. To increase the effect, touch your tongue to the ridge of the roof of your mouth, near the upper teeth.
Chanting. The repetitive tonality of Monks chanting, and traditional Jewish chanting, both calm the heart and settle your system. Look for a recording called “Chant”, made by real monks. Or look for recordings of Gregorian chants. You will be entranced. And you may even want to exercise while listening. Traditional Jewish chanting must be heard to be understood, so search YouTube for recordings if this sounds interesting to you. Look for the term nigun as well. You may find yourself transported.
Hymns. These can also transport you. Look for themes such as: It is well with my soul. This hymn was written by a man who had just lost his family at sea but then came to deep peace. Listen to this traditional hymn, and notice it moving your heart and calming your shoulders. Both the music and the words of hymns can be very moving and calming.
Drumming. Try rhythmic tapping on a drum. For your first try, if you don’t own a drum, you can use an oatmeal box or glass cabinet door. Try a straight, even tapping, or a double-tap followed by a single tap: ta ta TA, ta ta TA, and repeating continuously for a few minutes. Notice your breath slowing and easing, and your whole busy back relaxing. If you find drumming very calming, you may want to get a custom gourd drum, like mine, shown here.
Nature sounds. If you have a yard or nearby park, try eating al fresco and listening to the birds. Or visit a watercourse and sit, listening to the rippling or rushing water. If you need to be inside, look for recordings of nature: water, rustling leaves, and birds. An easy source is Pandora’s Zen Garden Radio, which has light music playing over nature sounds. The artists are listed. So when you find an artist with a piece you really like, you can pursue other offerings they may have.

These are just a few of the ways you can use sound to take you to degrees of CALM. Try them all, and let me know what worked best for you personally. And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Kebba Buckley Button, MS, OM, is a stress solutions expert, holistic guide, and award-winning author who celebrates life. She has a longtime energy healing practice and is an ordained minister. Among her books are: Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br), Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire, and Sacred Meditation: Embracing the Divine. The books are available on Amazon and through Kebba’s office. To email us, kebba@kebba.com .

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Signs for Calm

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All week, I am offering quick ways to help you get to your CALM state. The quickest path to CALM for you might be different than the quickest path to CALM for your sister or maybe for me. But tools for CALM are primary, helping you shift your mind and metabolism to a more restful state that will feed your health. And therefore your relationships. And therefore your success in life. Now, if you prefer to be excited all the time, that’s a different personality, and you are burning out your adrenal glands. This is not healthy.

So today, I’m recommending three forms of indoor visuals that will remind you of and take you to CALM. These apply in the home and also in the office, if you have a separate office you go to.

Images. Paintings, prints, sculptures, framed photographs, silk flower arrangements: these are familiar decor items. As you look at each item on your walls or coffee table, or pedestals, do you feel calmed by each of them? For example, as in the photo above, we have a deeply serene scene of the ocean, looking out from a beach, where a person is meditating. For more CALM, consider switching out artworks that are not calming for new ones that are. Have you ever seen a calendar that had a different inspiring image for each month? These are plentiful in the Fall, but they also are available throughout the year. These are inexpensive and offer themes of gardens, garden paths/gates, skies, mountains, artworks, Zen gardens…the array is endless. And if you fall in love with a monthly image, you can always take it off the calendar and get it framed. I did that with an image of a garden gate.
Signs. From post-it notes to notebook pages with favorite quotes, to well-designed slogan art, this is your chance to keep restating something that re-inspires you to return to your CALM. Leave yourself informal notes, stuck to your grooming mirror (morning inspiration) and above your pillow (night-time inspiration). Little notes are great on your car’s dashboard, also. The calligraphy artwork piece, below, lives on my therapy office wall. It reminds me and everyone that we *are* on our best path, right now. Very calming. Do you have signs up already, that you find inspiring and calming?
Mugs. The humble mug can be the greatest carrier of a message we need to see over and over again. While we hold the mug with our favorite beverage, we see the design and any message, many times. So, what if your mug displayed a calming message? Here is one, telling us we need not worry. What a calming message. Look for more message mugs that are meaningful and calming to you!

Did you notice your body relaxing and calming as you went over this list? Read my posts each day this month, and be rested, revitalized and amazed! And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Finger Poses for Calm

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This week, I am sharing short, easy ways to get to your CALM state. Getting to a state of CALM, and staying there, is a longtime passion of mine. As a child, and through school and university days, I found life very stressful. It was so easy to get wound up, to get so tense I couldn’t think straight or enjoy life. And I knew so many unhappy people. So today, my passion is to help people heal from every type of pain: spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical. People come to my natural healing practice to have their pains dissolved, to have their energy transformed, and to learn specific strategies for preventing pain from invading them again. I have and teach many hundreds of tools. So let’s talk now about CALM, a primary tool for transformation.

CALM will allow all the muscles of your body to relax, at least somewhat. This will let go of nerves that are squeezed tight, and many pains will release simply because you are CALM. This process will further allow circulation to optimize, so your heart and other organs will get better blood flow and oxygen feed. I have met a surgeon who is more calm than most people I have ever met. I tease him that he is “unnaturally calm”. His every movement is permeated with calm thoughtfulness. And he is renowned for being pleasant and doing exquisite surgery. And if you are not a surgeon, you’ll have both hands free, and you can try some finger poses. A detailed chart of possibilities is above, but start with these two:

Two outstanding finger holds will take you directly to CALM. These are (1) the Forefinger Massage and the (2) the Center Palm Touch.

(1) For the Forefinger Massage, gently feel the tops of your shoulders and then the bases of both your forefingers. Notice how hard your shouldertop muscles are. Now notice there are little muscles forming the flesh of the base finger segment. Whichever forefinger has the tightest little muscles is the one you start with. Gently massage the tight muscles, especially working knots you may find. Do this for 2 minutes at a time. Then, if you have time, switch to massaging the other forefinger. Notice you are calmer and your shouldertops are not as rock-hard.

(2) For the Center Palm Touch, start by noticing your center 3 fingers. Now place the tips of those fingers in the center of the opposite palm, and notice that you may feel a pulse under your fingertips. Drop your shoulders. Hold your arms in a relaxed way. Relax your hands, also. Notice your heart and your hold body calming. Resolve to keep this CALM with you throughout the day.

Read my posts each day this month, and be revitalized and amazed! And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Affirmations for Calm

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In my last post, I claimed that, for you to be as happy and healthy and fulfilled as possible, you must cultivate CALM as a secret launching pad for your joyful vitality. I showed a method for starting with the power of an exhaling breath.

Today, I offer another very simple, yet profound technique: the 3-4-word mantra. Think about what phrases really calm you, and chant them over and over and over and over… you get the idea. When I was a child, and I was crying, my father would say, “It’ll be alright. It’ll be alright. It’ll be alright.” Sometimes he patted my little shoulder as he almost-chanted that phrase. And you know what? He was right! Try chanting this phrase, “It’ll be alright. It’ll be alright. It’ll be alright”, like a pulse in your consciousness. By the end of the day, you will have chanted it hundreds of times. If you have an oximeter, let it show you your heart rate has dropped as you have been chanting this phrase.

Another 4-word mantra that can work, regardless of your faith or nonfaith, is: “Things always work out. Things always work out. Things always work out.” Try it, and notice how your shoulders have dropped. You even look better with the better posture this CALM brings.

Try one of these each day and see which works best for you. Or maybe you have another short phrase you want to try. Please let me know what that is and how it worked for you. Truly, things do always work out. And now you are calmer. This week, I will be continuing to share daily about tools with which to be CALM and keep your CALM.

Read my posts each day this month, and be revitalized and amazed! And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Getting Calm in a Noisy World

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My passion is for you to be as happy and healthy and fulfilled as possible. Today, I’m talking about a dimension of livingness that is a secret launching pad for your joyful vitality. It’s the ability to find and keep CALM in this noisy world.

Can we agree that, right now, the World is noisy, clattery, busy, congested, and generally stress-inducing? There are more people on the Planet now than ever before. Cities are being built higher than ever before. No beach is deserted, inviting you to stroll in solitude. Local hiking trails are busy. Think you’ll climb a mountain to find wise quiet? Kilamanjaro literally has a waiting line, for people trying to ascend the summit.

Maybe it would be good if you carry your calm with you? And not look for it in specialized environments?

Calmness is the cradle of power. –Josiah Gilbert Holland

This week, I will be sharing daily about tools with which to be CALM and keep your CALM.

For now, take a complete deep exhale, from your scalp to your toes. Let the inhaling take care of itself. Do this three times. Become aware that your shoulder tops are achy and want to drop down an inch. Let them do that. Exhale deeply again.

In one minute, notice a lightness rising in your neck and the back of the head. You’re younger now. Read my posts each day this month, and be revitalized and amazed! And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: 4 Top Tips for Thriving in the Desert Summer

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Today, in Phoenix, it was 100 degrees. Longtime residents of Phoenix and other desert cities may shrug off temperatures around 100. After all, it easily gets to 115. However, if you are new to the Desert, you’ll do better with some hot tips to keep you cool! Here are 4 top tips to help you to thrive and actually enjoy your life all during the hottest weeks.

1. Limit your heat exposure.

Know that heat exhaustion and heat stroke are serious medical conditions. Heat illness is a major cause of death worldwide. Symptoms include dehydration, electrolyte loss, and failure of the body’s ability to regulate its temperature. Key organs can be damaged, and people can die. Just read those daily newspaper articles on passport-free border-crossers. To completely avoid heat illness, drink water, carry water with you at all times, recharge your electrolytes (minerals) frequently, and never stop to think or chat in the full sun. Park your car in the shade and/or use portable sunshades in the windshields when it’s parked. Call for medical help if any faintness/weakness/head pain/red face doesn’t subside in 15 minutes or so.

2. Limit your sun exposure.

The solar radiation index in Arizona is very high, and Phoenix is the number 2 city for skin cancer in the world. Stay in the shade when possible. Wear a high-SPF wide-brimmed hat, good sunglasses, and sunscreen of SPF15 or higher. There are nonsticky SPF 110 products available now. When you’re tubing, re-apply to your ankles after hooking them under the tube. Water doesn’t prevent sunburn. When you’re out walking and see a friend, step together into the shade to have your conversation.

3. Keep your energy up.

Too much heat is just tiring. In Chinese medicine, too much yang becomes yin. In desert areas, the summer is the most important time of year to practice personal energy management. In your diet, emphasize fresh fruits and salads, which contain many enzymes, vitamins and minerals not present in processed foods. Carefully choose where you put your energy each week, in projects and people.

4. Keep your mind and heart fresh.

The most hidden danger of the hot months here is that the brain and creativity go flat, and with them, the emotions. Relationships may suffer from blahs, boredom, and crankiness. If you don’t keep yourself healthy, energized, and clear-minded, you may damage some relationships and bore yourself sick. So get out your cool clothes, your sense of humor, and the events announcements. Try some new places, festivals, groups, and events. Check the e-calendars from your city, nearby cities, your arts center, church or social groups. Try a moonlight hike with such groups as the Sierra Club. Tour the Botanical Garden at 7 am. Watch a friend audition for a theater troupe. Call old friends and meet in the evening for cool drinks and hot bands, at trendy rooftop clubs. Try a night at a resort where they show movies over the pool and give you your own inflated rafts to watch from. There are many options!

These strategies can help you this summer, so you’re not just surviving, you’re thriving! Make this your best summer ever, so far. And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: If You Can’t Find It, You Don’t Really Own It!

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Do you need to declutter? How does this image of clutter make you feel? Don’t tell me it’s “casual”! I dare you to tell me the same couch without the clothes dropped on it wouldn’t look better. The people I know who have messy homes generally love being in a clean, clear, well-decorated home. For a visit. And then they go home and can’t seem to shift their own mess. So is there a great answer? There are different systems that work for different people, to declutter.

The Kon-Mari, or konmari, method, is probably the most famous method. Developed by a petite and feminine Japanese woman, Marie Kondo, this method was made famous as The Magic of Tidying Up. In this system, you sort for what you really love and discard everything else, by category. Vases or pants, for example, might be the next category of attack. Make a pile of vases or pants, look them over, and keep only the ones that make you feel good. Your favorite charity will be delighted to have what doesn’t work for you. A relative of mine did this with pants. She found two pairs out of 19 that were keepers. Her husband said kindly, “I think we need to go buy you more pants!”

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Releasing Stuff feels great!

Ten Percent Decluttering was invented by me, and almost no one knows about it. This consists of walking into a room and asking yourself, “what can I take out?” Your goal is to remove at least one tenth of what is in the room, asking yourself if Tyou love it and it gives you joy and energy. For me, this method takes less time than konmari. And it can be repeated tomorrow or any other time. Just keep walking into the room and taking a fresh look. Then ask again, “What can I take out of this room?” Then immediately toss it, recycle it, or donate it! In either of these methods, be brave! Ask yourself, “Is this really something I want to carry forward with me in my life?” If not, you know what to do.

Are you having trouble deciding if you need to declutter? Here is a key:

If you can’t find a thing quickly, you don’t really own it!

When was the last time you looked for that dressy crystal-studded watch and actually found it? So if you can’t find it or use it, it isn’t in your sphere of influence, and you don’t really “own” it. Or how about that green leather-bound NRSV Bible you last referred to 5 years ago? Where is that, anyway? If you can’t find it now, you may as well launch a decluttering project. And when you find that dressy watch or that green leather-bound NRSV Bible, either give thema specific memorable location, or donate them.

The less you own, the quicker it is to clean your home. Also, the quicker it is to lay your hands on anything. Imagine how free you would feel with, say, a third less Stuff? Gasp! Imagine how much spare time you would have to relax with loved ones, rather than managing all that Stuff? Get on a clear-and-donate binge and notice your stress going down down down.

And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Touched by Grace

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There is a strange and transcendent experience that many have, of being touched by Grace. Grace is scripturally the unearned favor of God. But here we are talking about the *experience* of feeling the touch of the Divine. When it happens to us, it is unmistakable. Today, I share some quotes about this experience, from Chapter 6—Touched by Grace—of my book, Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire:

Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful; for beauty is God’s handwriting— a wayside sacrament.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

It’s the overwhelming awe, joy and beauty of the Universe and the deep sense of connectedness to the World that we all seek.

~ Albert Einstein

Whatever feeds you, whatever nurtures you, is holy.

~ Rev. Erika von Haaren

And that peace which comes from the innermost recesses of the Spirit is left with us: a peace which the world cannot take away, for it springs from the bosom of the Father of light, love, life and wisdom.

~ Ernest Holmes

Divine love is always at work for every man, whether he knows it or not.

~ Unknown

Inner peace is a State of Grace: a baby having just been fed, diaper changed, resting on their mother’s chest and surrounded by that familiar heartbeat. Inner peace is right here, right now, just a decision away. We always have the capacity to experience joy and peace in every moment if that is what we choose to see.

~ Rev. Marvin Brown

Did your heart and/or spirit feel touched by the Divine while taking in these quotes? Did you feel your body shift? Consider posting any of these that really move you, so you can see them frequently and remember: Grace is always there for you. And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Moving Into Peace Within

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2017 Whatever is true

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Recently, I described the importance and nature of personal peace, or Peace Within (LINK). It’s something I feel very deeply about. Today, I share more about how to actually move into Peace Within. Consider these several quotes, and notice how you feel after reading each one. These are from Chapter 4 of my book, Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire:

Peace is present right here and now, in ourselves and in everything we do and see. Every breath we take, every step we take, can be filled with peace, joy, and serenity. The question is whether or not we are in touch with it. We need only to be awake, alive in the present moment.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

And we know that God makes all things work together for good, for those who love Him.

~ Romans 8:28

Fear less, hope more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Hate less, love more; And all good things are yours.

~ Swedish Proverb

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

~ Phillipians 4:8-9

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.

~Unknown

How do your heart and spirit feel now? Did one or two of the quotes touch you deeply? Try journaling about what Peace Within means to you, and how differently you function when you are in a peaceful state. Feel your body shift as your heart and spirit shift. And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Why Take a Week Off

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I just got back after a week out of the office. Some family things were going on that needed my attention. It was imperative. Our 2 nearest relatives were flying in. I made the difficult decision to be out of the office for a week, during a blog challenge I was committed to, the Ultimate Blog Challenge. Hey, I love my work! I’m doing what I’m called to do, and I love interacting with clients and colleagues. I love writing and specifically, generating materials that help people trade in their stress for energy and happiness. At the decision moment, I was perfectly up-to-date in the Ultimate Blog Challenge and would possibly lose some Google search impetus by taking a week out.

Oh well! So I messaged a couple of people not to worry, postponed all my clients, and cancelled all my meetings and networking events. Now guilt-free, I changed my channel to HFL—Home and Family Life (I made this up). It felt strangely freeing. While not a vacation, it was a complete switchup, a complete re-focusing of my energies. The first day, it was hard not to write an article. But everything worked out, and I am now back in the office, heart and mind refreshed.

There’s a lot of expert commentary about why you should take breaks during the day. This list comes from University College London, or UCL, which offers it on their website:

Breaks help you to process and retain information.
You’ll get a better sense of the bigger picture.
You’ll be more creative.
Breaks can help you cultivate heathier habits.
Taking regular breaks helps you be more productive.

If you extend this concept to taking a few days to change your personal channel, you can see you would be greatly refreshing your mind and views—your ability to look at things creatively.

The vacation studies show that your feel-good brain neurotransmitters, serotonin and dopamine, rise during your days off. Vacations are not trivial,” says Frank Farley, PhD, a leading clinical psychologist, professor at Temple University in Philadelphia, and former president of the American Psychological Association. “In this workaholic America, we have to treat them as precious stuff … keep alive the good feelings and relaxing times.”

So maybe, like me, you want to take a week to simply change your channel? Then mark your calendar to really do it! Cancel your clients and meetings, change that channel, and simply look for positives in your everyday life. “Every day, think about things that you did well, that you enjoyed that day,” Farley says. And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Transport Moments of Peace Within

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In the last post, we were talking about the importance of finding and deepening your Peace Within. Sometimes we get deep hits of Peace Within from moments or places. I shared these stories in my book, Inspirations for Peace Within.

Occasionally, we see a person who is clearly in a state of transcendent personal peace, and we somehow get a transfer effect, feeling more peaceful ourselves. This happened to me years ago, on a stressful day of travel. On returning from an engineering conference, I was dashing through the Pittsburgh airport, feeling tense, tired, and overworked, when I was absolutely riveted by a person going by. She was a nun, wearing a traditional habit. She was walking peacefully through the terminal, wearing an etheric expression of utter happy calm. Her slight smile reminded me of the ageless magnetism of Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. I stopped completely. I had to stare as she passed. Her unreasonable peace and calm, in a noisy and busy environment, translated profoundly into my body, mind, and soul. I was changed by her. Now, years later, every time I think of that nun, my mind and body re-set, and I feel tension and stress leave me. I go directly to peace within.

Some place-related experiences can give us a profound shift into peace within. A few years ago, I was in a small town in Colorado for Christmas. Framed by a stunning view of the Rockies, many towering, majestic pine trees surrounded our historic hotel. Late Christmas Eve, fresh snow began to fall. Having much on my mind, I bundled up to go walk among the dancing flakes. Stepping out into the moonlight, I could feel the tension start to leave my muscles. I prayed for clarity and peace, and for any guidance I might need for the season and the upcoming year. I had not been out in the night air for more than ten minutes before my cares and worries of the last year began to seem completely insignificant. Soon, I couldn’t even think what my issues had been. Now walking in an inch of new snow, I looked up through the white-laden tree branches and deeply inhaled the sweet winter air. I felt surrounded by and filled with the Peace That Passes All Understanding. I felt the Divine Presence. I experienced a deeper level of peace within than I had felt in many years. I walked on. When I finally stepped back into the hotel, I realized I had been transformed. Years later, still, just recalling that walk vividly brings back the experience and the utter serenity. Perhaps you have had related experiences.

Take note of moments when you experience unplanned waves of peace. Journal out what you notice, how it affects you, and perhaps how wonderful you feel. The more you notice these waves of Peace Within, the more you will be able to keep that feeling. And that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

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Healthy Happy Loving Life: Where to Find That Elusive Peace Within

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Photo © Kebba Buckley Button—from the water garden at St. Phillip’s in the Hills Episcopal Church, Tucson, Arizona

Can we agree that we live in a noisy world these days? To name a few crises:

Police are killing people over traffic stops, a US President incited an attack on the Capitol and on his own Vice President, militants are moving into Afghanistan as US troops pull out, and Hamas militants are blowing up Israeli/Palestinian sites. A cyberattack on a US gasoline provider crippled gas supplies for the Southeast US, and gas supplies are only today flowing well again. Normally shrewd evening show host Steven Colbert has lost his bearings and is using the word p-nis many times per show. Churches are being closed and sold—3 in my area. The polar bears are looking for better ice, and the orangutans have almost no habitat any more, thanks to replanting to generate palm oil supplies. The COVID-19 pandemic whines on, and in India, it’s going wild. People seek a better life by walking across continents, in Africa, Europe, and South/Central/North America. Children are starving and/or running for their lives in many countries.

Remember, I said that’s just a few. There are others. Whatever your belief system, you cannot stay in crisis mode! It is imperative that you find and solidify your internal base of personal peace: your Peace Within. You will not find it in CNN e-updates. You will not find it in the words of shattered clerics. Mom passed away awhile ago. Your partner is freaked out also. Where can you turn for peace? WITHIN.

A young French nun, now a saint, wrote this:

May today there be peace within.

May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite possibilities

that are born of faith in yourself and others.

May you use the gifts that you have received,

and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content with yourself just the way you are.

Let this knowledge settle into your bones,

and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.

~ St. Thérèse of Lisieux

Are you in? Practice letting Peace Within settle into your bones. Then that’s you, being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm! More on this tomorrow.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Help Me Name This Rooster, Please!

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Roosters are one of the wonders of the bird world. The male of whatever chicken breed, there are at least a dozen established types of roosters. You can read gobs about how to select a rooster for your flock. Roosters have a fabulous job: guard the flock and procreate.

But roosters also provide a public service: they wake up everyone within earshot, with their morning crowing. It’s usually written down as “cock-a-doodle-doo” or “ERR-er-er-er-errrrr”. Whichever we think we hear in roosterish, it is clear they are giving everyone and every living thing a wake-up call. This great limerick above is something I captured from Pinterest, and it cracks me up! There was a rooster in my neighborhood for awhile, and he “went off” at 5:30 every morning. Now understand, this was in an urban neighborhood with small lots, and the gangs were increasingly moving in. Did the rooster’s owner have room for chickens, so chic now in the 2020’s? I’ll never know, as the rooster went silent after several months. Maybe the neighbors killed it. Or killed the owners? (Yes, I moved.) Or is the rooster now working downtown as a mime? (Very active night life in downtown Phoenix, especially on First Fridays.)

2021 Rooster canvas- IMG_0298

© Kim Lewis via AllPosters.com

Whatever your experience with roosters, they have become a timeless symbol of cheerful breakfast cafés, the places where you go for coffees and croissants and omelets. I love to create delicious food, so my kitchen is a special place. I had been saving a certain space in the kitchen for a pub sign I was determined to paint. Then I realized what I really needed was a cheerful rooster image, much like some cafés have used—a colorful symbol of waking up, of vibrantly moving into the day.

So I found this delightful, heartwarming image online (www.AllPosters.com). He’s the perfect rooster for me. I ordered the version on canvas, and it’s perfect for the space. Now, he needs a name, so I can call him by name when I walk into the kitchen. Will you help me name that rooster please? Just put your suggestion or suggestions in the comment section, and I’ll post the results and winner. The winner can have personal satisfaction, plus a set of my 3 books (as shown below) if s/he would like them.

And that’s you, chuckling, and being more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: 3 Ways to Beat Deadline Stress!

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Are you ever stuck, right before a deadline? Feeling stressed because your brain is just not working, and you can’t think of ideas for your project? While I can’t help with your topic, I can help with your stress! When you drain away your stress, it will be easy to think and write and meet your deadline. So try these simple-yet-fantastic ways to beat Deadline Stress. You’ll gear up your brain and dissolve your tension!

The Shoulder Shift. Roll your shoulders up and forward, then around, slowly, stretching, for one minute. Now roll them up and back and around, slowly, stretching, for one minute. Notice the warming in your hands, ankles and feet. You have just opened up the circulation to the whole body, which will get to the brain in one more minute. In one minute, notice a warming sensation flowing up the back of your neck. This is energy, and it is recharging your energy-starved brain. You may notice your optimism rising already.

The Chocolate Churnover. Earlier, were you craving chocolate? Now is the time to munch an ounce of dark chocolate to help your brain. The antioxidants and theobromine in the chocolate will lift your energy and metabolism. Stimulating the tongue and mouth, by eating, lifts the energy of both the Fire- and Earth Meridians. The bitter flavor in the chocolate stimulates the Fire Meridian, and the sweetness energizes the Earth Meridian. If you heat your chocolate in almond- or dairy milk, drinking your hot chocolate will warm the entire digestive system, which stimulates brain function, increasing clarity. Also, the potassium in either form of milk will assist brain optimization. Now you have churned your whole energy system, and it is pumping in support of you.

The Latte Lift. If you are a latte lover, try this trick. Drink your favorite latte and relax in your recliner or lie down for 20 minutes. Set a timer. You get a break, and as you’re rising, the antioxidants and caffeine (or in tea lattes, L-Theanine, theobromine, and theophylline) are just hitting your blood-brain barrier. Now you’re rested and refreshed, yet your blood, oxygen, and energy are flowing well.

Now, you no longer have to dread Deadline Stress! Play around with these techniques and make them part of your regular practice. You never need to be stuck again. Now you’ll be beating all those deadlines and soaring as the professional you are meant to be.

And that’s you: more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: 6 Natural Allergy Tips You Hadn’t Thought Of

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© Kebba Buckley Button 2021. World Rights Reserved

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If you are sniffling and itching and feeling dragged out, then you know we’re in peak pollen season. Your allergies can make you miserable! So if the usual over-the-counter antihistamines don’t work or don’t appeal to you, check out these natural options–with no drug interactions:

1. Check your spice cabinet for ginger powder. Mix ½ teaspoon ginger powder into a cup of warm, filtered (chlorine-removed) water. Stir and drink. Feel your symptoms improving in minutes. Yes, fresh ginger root, grated and pressed through cheesecloth or a tea filter, is wonderful. But when you are feeling bad, and you want immediate improvement, just add the ginger powder to your water. The ginger is very yang, and it will balance out the yin symptoms of allergies,

2. Change your home’s air filter to one that has many accordion-type folds across its width. Look for one that says it filters allergens. This means it catches the tiniest pollens, which can be the most irritating. Research has proven that this type of filter removes almost all of the provocative particles, so spend the extra $8 for this type. Your improved sleep at night and your increased productivity during the day will be worth much more than that. Change it monthly.

3. Get a silent ionic air filter for the area where you work or relax the most. This will remove even more allergens, again increasing the quality of your sleep, your productivity, and your recreation.

4. If the roof of your mouth is prickly, try drinking orange juice.

5. Place the palms of your hands to the sides of your neck and gently rock across the sore muscles. Notice how tight your shoulder tops are, and gently stretch your shoulders in every direction for 2 minutes. Notice your congestion calming and your head feeling less heavy.

6. Subscribe to email updates from Pollen.com . Designate your location and you’ll find out, for example, that Phoenix is high in Olive, Grass, and Mulberry pollens. Today’s level is 7.1, and tomorrow is expected to be 6.6. So tomorrow is a better day for gardening, and today is a better day to wear a mask outside.

Set yourself up for comfort and energy during pollen season! Now exhale completely and enjoy this beautiful Spring! And that’s you: more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Jack Hanna’s Final Safari

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Some of the people I admire most on this Planet are those who are in wildlife education and conservation. Jack Hanna is an outstanding example of achievement in this group. Jack Hanna has been a wildlife enthusiast since he was a child. He grew up on a farm and started working for a veterinarian, as a volunteer, when he was 11. In college days, he kept ducks in his dorm room, which his college did not like. Nor did the college like the donkey he kept in a shed, behind his fraternity house. Later, Jack and his wife, Suzi, would have a petting zoo on his family’s farm.

Professionally, Jack landed at a then run-down Columbus Zoo, because his small daughter Julie could get the best leukemia care at the Columbus Children’s Hospital. She recovered from her leukemia by age 6. Jack stayed at the Columbus Zoo for a total of 42 years, building up its habitat management and public reputation, plus achieving an expansion and adding an Aquarium. He toured many countries, recording television pieces you can still see on his channel and other online sites. His “everyman” manner and sense of humor won him a lot of affection and attention, plus interviews on such shows as David Letterman. Anything could happen in these live interviews, where Jack would have several wild animals brought out individually. I personally saw one of Jack’s monkeys piddle down Dave Letterman’s suit, but Dave had a fresh suit on after the next break. Whew!

Jack was such a force for positive wildlife management that, after he served as Director of the Zoo for 42 years, he was officially titled Director Emeritus in 1992. In 2020, Jack finally completely retired from his roles at the Columbus Zoo. Now we know why. This message from his grown children appeared on Facebook April 7:

“Today, we reach out to share some personal Hanna Family news. Doctors have diagnosed our dad, Jack Hanna, with dementia, now believed to be Alzheimer’s disease. His condition has progressed much faster in the last few months than any of us could have anticipated. Sadly, Dad is no longer able to participate in public life as he used to, where people all over the world watched, learned, and laughed alongside him…and yes, he still wears his khakis at home.”

Jack Hanna changed the world of zoo management, nudging forward to improve conditions for animals and to help people understand the wild world better. His passion for his work lives on in the humor-filled videos of his exploits, which generally include a blooper reel. What could be more wonderful than a life in which your work is centered in your passion, you have a happy marriage and children, and you affect the lives of millions with gentle films of wildlife?

Jack is now in his final safari on this Earth, in the country of Alzheimer’s. But you don’t have to let go of him and his work. Look for him on Facebook (“Jungle Jack Hanna”), YouTube, Hulu, fuboTV, and Samsung TV Plus, among others. Go visit the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. Donate to the Zoo. Donate to sanctuaries, such as White Oak Conservation, outside Jacksonville, Florida; it’s a new home for 30 retired circus elephants, who used to work for Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey. Read about how individuals, such as Cher, have helped rescue animals stuck in terrible conditions. Cher was key in rescuing a Pakistani elephant named Kaavan. Kaavan is now living in a wildlife sanctuary in Cambodia, and is said to be happy.

Seek your healthy passions and put them to work. Live your passion! Admire people who are changing the World, and be inspired by them. Embrace the possibilities! And you will find you are more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: My 3 Favorite Recipe Sites

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If you have ever cooked by using a recipe, you may remember bits of mismatched paper, like in this image. Each was a treasure, bearing a formula some favorite cook—perhaps Mom—had worked out and passed down, or generously shared. Some were shared from cook to cook, with the promise that this secret formula would never be shared on to someone else. Some recipes were tiny cutouts from product packages, like my favorite Baker’s Baking Chocolate Brownie recipe. In school days, I was taught to transcribe all these treasured formulas onto index cards, and I did that for years. Then my file box was full, and then so was my second file box. Then I developed thick files. Then I thinned those down to 2 1-inch files, “SWEET” and “SAVORY”. I still have those and cherish them.

But today, if I want a cook-tested recipe for a basic gingerbread, I go to one of 3 places, and they are all websites. Today’s recipe developers are savvy to the needs of people with allergies, sensitivities, and political views. So it’s easy to find clearly labeled recipes that are gluten-free, grain-free, vegetarian, vegan, keto, paleo, and so on. It is now widely recognized that what you eat is the basis of your health, and you will feel your best following the diet you have found works best for you. When you feel better, it’s easier to be happy, and then you can enjoy your life more! And that’s the purpose of my work. Busy professionals, just like me, need to eat right to have the energy they need!

When I have found a recipe I want, I convert it to a Word document and save it in my computer recipe file. I rarely open my paper recipe folders any more, except for special occasions. The reason I have only 3 online favorite sources for recipes is: they meet all my needs, and this keeps things simple. If I see a chef demonstrating something interesting on TV, I simply remember the twists s/he uses, and I try that extra ingredient sometime.

So here is my secret source trio:

AllRecipes.com . Go ahead, ask this site for anything. Superb for comfort food. Brought to you by All Recipes magazine.
The Gluten Free Homestead by Barbara Bianchi. Download her App, Recipe Book PRO, if you want to have recipes right on your phone. How things have changed from the recipe card file days! Today she is featuring a Country Style Pork Ribs recipe. Subscribe to her tantalizing emails by going to: http://glutenfreehomestead.com .
Chocolate Covered Katie, home site at https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com . Katie is a beautiful, young- and thin- looking woman, whose appearance belies the deliciousness of all her desserts (not all chocolate). Her specialty is formulating a recipe that can work for ANY diet, and she gives the options to switch out as your needs dictate. She has a lot of treats that are single-serving or small batch, so if craving 2 dozen cookies is a weak area for you, that’s no problem with her smaller recipes. Katie has been on national TV, so you know she has major fans out there! Subscribe to her newsletter if you are currently salivating.

Embrace the infinite varieties of healthy and tasty recipes available, that meet your and your family’s needs. And you will find you are more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Happy Mothers’ Day!

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This column goes out to all the mothers, step-mothers, birth mothers, pairs of mothers, part-time mothers, ad-hoc mothers, fathers serving as mothers, and mothers who lost their only baby/child. It also goes out to all the would-be mothers who did not get to have the young they wanted. In addition, it goes out to all the animal mothers, including animal mothers of some other species who nurse and raise the motherless young of another species. And to whatever other mothers I may have forgotten.

I am blessed that I had the perfect mother for me. Although I did not know it when I was young and could not see it until she had passed into Spirit and I was going through her papers and photos. Now I see it and am so grateful. Even now, there are questions that bubble up, that I wish had occurred to me when she was still alive. Even now, I shop for sun hats and think, “OH—Mom will like that one!” Oh wait. She doesn’t need sun hats any more.

So on this Mothers’ Day, I cherish all the emotions of both joy and wistfulness. I give thanks for my mother, my Mom, the one who taught me to read and to think cursing was icky. I love and cherish her more than ever. Happy Mothers’ Day, Mom! And Happy Mothers’ Day to all the other kinds of mothers!

What do you know and treasure about your mother, living or no longer living? Or what do you wish you knew? The more we explore the depths of our hearts and feel that treasure, that love, the more we will find we are more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: National Day of Prayer

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2021 Man hands on Bible--rsz-shutterstock_1038655333 Today is our US National Day of Prayer. Passed into law in 1952, it’s a day for all faiths to focus on prayer, in whatever form they may believe in. And there are many forms of prayer. Some popular forms are:

Worship and praise, acknowledging God’s greatness and praising Him
Petitionary or intercessory prayer, asking God to do something or change something that appears to be true, for self or others
Affirmative prayer, expressing that God is always blessing us, and knowing that God is addressing your concern, giving thanks that this is true
Thanksgiving, expressing gratitude for what you have, for the good things that God has provided and done
Spiritual warfare, asking God to protect us and guard us against harm

National Day of Prayer – May 6

But please, if these sound a bit technical, don’t feel you need to pick one and learn how to properly use it. Just find a quiet moment, deeply focus on your feelings about your prayer need, and just start talking to the Divine, from your heart, as an invisible friend. When you are troubled, go ahead and cry. Then ask Upstairs, “what do You think?” You may be astonished! I once asked “what do You think?” and I heard words directing me to do certain things; I met my soulmate husband as a result.

Prayer: the original wireless connection! No monthly fees, no wifi setup, and your call is always answered. Try it more often, not just on the National Day of Prayer. And you’ll find you are more and more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Happy healthy loving life

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Why You Are Late

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Let’s be honest about why you are late. Not only is this a quietly hot topic, but it also has been studied by many who are seeking solutions. It is clear that most people like to be on-time and are secretly angry when others are late. But sometimes the most careful planners are also late. There are a number of causes and solutions.

I first started thinking about lateness, when, as a child, I realized I knew one chronically late adult person (CLP) and one chronically early adult person (CEP). I noticed the CLP would go to everything 20 minutes late, thus—I finally realized—reducing the unpleasant event by 20 minutes each time. That’s a savings of 200 minutes across 10 events. The CLP would answer the house phone (only landlines then), knowing that we should have left 10 minutes ago, thus ensuring that the 5 minute call made us 15 minutes late. But then it was “time to change clothes!” Sometimes, we got to the car door, and the CLP heard the house phone, unlocked the house and went back in, to answer it. Pleading made no difference. It was agreed to set the clocks forward 20 minutes, to help the CLP, but of course, the CLP knew about the 20 minute “grace period” and still was late. The CEP liked to arrive early by at least 20 minutes, which served wonderfully for medical and business appointments. However, it caused an embarrassing strain for party hosts.

It has been said, humorously, by some who are often late:

Being on time never killed anyone,

but why take a chance?

I learned a stern standard for timeliness in a personal development course called Omega Vector Training. The leaders viewed lateness as something unnecessary, which you had created, to sabotage yourself. At the beginning of the course, you committed to be on time for sessions. “On time” was clearly defined as “in your seat, ready to listen and participate”. A one-minute piece of music was played to signal “move to your seats”. Neither stomach flu nor a flat tire was an excuse; these were seen as factors you had created. Participants not in their seats at the last chord of the music got to stand in front of everyone and be processed about their lateness. That training helped me to see life participation as a series of values-based agreements, with relationships bonded increasingly by the keeping of those agreements. When we agree to an appointment, we are setting a verbal contract, and keeping it shows respect for both the party we are meeting and for ourselves.

If we are late, is it possibly because we don’t really want to do that thing, or because we are afraid? Is it too many people, too much noise, or too much potential conflict? Might we be called upon to stand up and stand out to a degree we are uncomfortable with? Did that agreement get made for a time of day when our metabolism really can’t go at a reasonable speed? Looking at all the times we were ever late, if we’re honest, what were the causes? Could one cure be to change the way we make our agreements? Make notes for yourself with all your answers to these questions.

Would we be happier if we were always on time? Would our relationships be better? You choose. And that’s you, being Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Happy Star Wars Day!

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Happy Star Wars Day! Why? Because the most famous quote from the entire Star Wars Series is Han Solo (Harrison Ford) saying to Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), “May the Force be with you!” Throughout the Jedi training, there are powerful demonstrations of The Force, and how it can be directed. If just anyone could do it, there wouldn’t be Jedi training, would there?

And some time after the original 1977 movie, someone cutely said, on a 4^th of May, “May the Fourth be with you!” And so was born Star Wars Day. Star Wars fans and nerds everywhere text each other the greeting, early each May 4^th.

The Force, in the system of Star Wars, is a quasi-intelligent force that is directed for Good by cognoscenti of the ways of The Force. Yoda, the Jedi Master in the first movie, was around 900 years old (don’t correct me– no spoiler alerts!) , so he had been dealing consciously with The Force for a very long time. Yoda took on training Luke Skywalker, who had about 900 years of knowledge and skill to catch up with. The Star Wars movies tell tales of the timeless conflict between Good and Evil. Somehow, Luke Skywalker’s father, Darth Vader, had started as a Jedi Knight and went over to the Dark Side. Please DO NOT POST ANY SPOILER ALERTS in the comment section! There may be 12 or 13 people on the Planet still planning to watch the series.

What keeps coming to me, whenever I think of the Star Wars stories, is that The Force IS WITH US. In my experience of life, the Divine is a Force both subtle and dramatic, always dynamic when we turn our attention to it. Scripture says repeatedly “I will never leave you nor forsake you (Heb 5:3 for example).” So God is always with us. When we draw on the strength of God, of the Holy Spirit, there is no limit to what we can do. I have had many “impossible” exploits, with faith in the Divine. If we live in joyful expectancy of Divine Love and what the Divine is bringing, we can train ourselves to wield our faith to craft a powerful life. We can become stronger and stronger, wiser and wiser, better and better able to wreak Good in the Universe. And then we will be even more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

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Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Girl Scouts Innovate With the Times

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Every year, Girl Scout Cookie Season marks the beginning of Spring. There are Girl Scouts with tables in front of grocery stores and at church events. There are your friends with a cookie sales list, asking you to sign up and buy from their daughter the Girl Scout. But the Girl Scouts of today have gone well beyond simply spreading the word that it’s Cookie Season.

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Decades ago, the uniforms were green tailored dresses. Today, they are pastel vests, usually a jade green. The vests can be worn with any shorts outfit or pants outfit that today’s girls are used to wearing. But the Girl Scouts have been innovating with more than fashion. They are teaching business management. They use the cookie sales program to teach many skills: inventory, money management, app management—oh yes! Search your app store for Cookie Finder, where you can put in your location or simply zip code, and you’ll find the nearest location of a cookie sales event or Girl Scout seller. Want to simply order online? Of course you can! Just look out for shipping charges.

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But wait, there’s more! This morning, I saw a national news piece about Girl Scouts in Christiansburg, Virginia, delivering cookies by drone. Yes! A drone delivery company called Wing, a company related to Google, has been delivering library books and FedEx packages in Christiansburg since 2019. And now they deliver Girl Scout Cookies.

So pick your flavor of cookie and get out your payment method. The cookies will soon be with you, just like The Force. You’ll be helping a huge organization that helps girls grow into effective women. And you will be even more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Lessons of the Heart from My Octopus Teacher

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Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in interspecies friendships, Love, My Octopus Teacher, Relationships, Unusual friendships

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I knew My Octopus Teacher would be a real yawn. I was astonished when a brilliant friend recommended the film. But I was curious when it won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 2021 Academy Awards. So we dusted off our Netflix membership—since it is a Netflix production—and plunked down to watch it. I was not optimistic.

Happily, I was completely surprised! This 83-minute movie has a magnetic charm that draws you in and glues you to your seat! It follows a photographer/diver named Craig Foster for a year, as he is surprised to find himself befriending a wild common octopus. He visits her every day, in the kelp forests of South Africa’s waters. They become unlikely companions, like a Pinterest gallery of chickens hugging cats, dogs nurturing orphan kittens, and an elephant with his dog friend.

Lesson 1 of My Octopus Teacher: You can be friends with funny looking creatures of some other size and species. The Octopus friend is about the size of the diver’s hand, outspread. To her, the diver must have looked huge and bizarre. But she was able to sit on his hand and gently feel his forearm with her curling tentacles. At one point, she crawled up to his chest and apparently hugged him.

Lesson 2 of My Octopus Teacher: Live within the Force of the ocean. There is an effect the diver tried to explain: that the kelp forest is very complex and always moving. You never know what creature will come around the corner of a stand of giant kelp, and how you will need to react. Just go with it.

Lesson 3 of My Octopus Teacher: Sometimes a being knows when its time is up. We need to be grateful for our fond memories. The Octopus in this film signaled the diver that she would be going. She gave birth to many tiny octopi, then was too weak to zoom away from a predator.

Line up your kids and watch this movie. You will be witness to the extraordinary. You will be blessed by the gentle and caring relationship between the diver and the Octopus. You will be in awe of what you see in the life of the South African kelp forest. Feel your heart warm and your energy soften. You will be even more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Let go and let LOVE

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Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in Dealing with stress, Effective Living, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, living beyond, Love, the life you want

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Today, I’m sharing a story of conflict, of grace, and of love. As a professional healer and uplifter, I would love it if we never had personality clashes, anger, or hurt. But that is not human nature. We can and must seek to resolve the unhappy rifts that occasionally try to tear at good relationships. We can and must seek peaceful responses to conflict. We can and must seek deep, immoveable personal peace, Peace Within. We can and must substitute Love and grace for anxiety and hurt.

And that is where today’s story comes from. Some weeks ago, I suddenly had to do something for my husband’s health, just before rushing to a meeting. I texted the leader that I might be 20 minutes late. But she knew I would be there in time for my part of the meeting. So while I dislike being late, I was in good shape when I arrived, and I was pleased to be less late than I had estimated. As I exhaled and stepped into the meeting room, the leader burst into a laugh and asked, “SO ARE YOU STRESSED???” Hmm. Wait. No. I’m a stress management expert, with award-winning books and a long track record to prove it.

At the end of the meeting, the leader inexplicably decided to tell the group loudly that “The funniest thing happened at the beginning of the meeting!” Laughing like this was hysterically funny, she told the group I had blown in, totally stressed out and ragged, and she had had to calm me down. I kept smiling and pleasantly saying, no, no, that didn’t happen.

Actually I felt very violated. I recalled other times over the years (25) when this woman had made me the center of attention and belittled me, laughing. I couldn’t imagine going back to that group and giving her another chance to create a scene at my expense. I called one friend who had been at the meeting, for a reality check. I asked if she thought the meeting scene had damaged me. Her answer: no, because of the strong personality of the meeting leader, Mary. People would have chalked off what the woman said about me as, “That’s just Mary!”

I really appreciated my friend’s perspective. Still, I have long hated the little scenes Mary creates, as have many others who have left the group for this reason. I really needed to decide whether to ever go back to the group and possibly have her target me again. I continued to feel violated and angry for over a week. I was diligently processing what happened, the normal way.

Then, one day, a strange thing happened. I suddenly was filled with commanding waves of love for Mary. I suddenly was present to the cavalcade of good projects we had shared over the 25 years of friendship. I was relieved of my negative feelings about Mary’s behavior. I could only feel love. It was a love takeover! I was totally over my hurt and anger toward Mary. It was that fast.

I walked into the next meeting early, feeling nothing but love for Mary. We had a great hug. She asked if she should apologize to me in front of the group. I said that’s very gracious, but no, let’s just go forward as if it never happened. She was surprised, but she could see I meant it: I was completely over it, like it never happened.

I was blessed to be washed with waves of Love. It was easy to let go and let Love solve it. I was even more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm. When it’s your turn for hurt, wash it with Love and see what happens.

Kebba Buckley Button, MS, OM, is a stress solutions expert, holistic guide, and award-winning author who celebrates life. She has a longtime energy healing practice and is an ordained minister. Among her books are: Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br), Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire, and Sacred Meditation: Embracing the Divine. The books are available on Amazon and through Kebba’s office. To email us, kebba@kebba.com .

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Milestones and Gratitude

30 Saturday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in beating cancer, Dealing with stress, loss of a spouse, stress, Stress Management, the life you want

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beating cancer, Gratitude, Kebba Buckley Button, loss of a spouse, Practice gratitude, The life you want, UpBeat Living

Today marks a few milestones, and I celebrate my growth and life with rich exuberance– for a quiet person. Nine months ago, my husband passed to Heaven, and I became a widow. It’s all right– he was released from terrible pain, and it was his Time. It’s not quite like when I was single before marriage. There is a greater depth now, to my friendships, especially with those who have lost their spouses or other loved ones. Life has a richer texture somehow. I had my husband’s diamond wedding ring resized for me. It’s beautiful.

Today marks 10 months since I had cancer surgery and began a close relationship with the Mayo Clinic. I have chemo every 4 weeks, but only several cycles are left. I am shocking the doctors with my lack of side effects. I have all my hair and no digestive issues. But I remind them, I do energy therapy on myself daily, and I don’t eat a normal American diet. My diet is mainly organic and based on green salads and vegetables and fruits, not grains. I am now able to lift and drive. My true strength is coming back, and I am hardly ever dizzy. My mind is clear. What a relief! I am almost ready to unearth my treadmill, which I love. Over half the files and superfluous Stuff have left the house. I’m still joyfully working on clearing. It wouldn’t bother me for my home to look like the After of an HGTV project.

The UBC blog challenges–30 articles every 3 months– have helped me to have structure in this time of transition. I wrote daily through the August, November, January, and now April challenges. I got to know very interesting writers from various regions of the US and from a few distant countries. I became friends with a few. I did spiritual counseling by text more than once. I sent tiny garden gloves (hard to find!) to a 3-year-old blogger, Lia, and she later sent me tea and homemade zucchini lemon cake. Lia named the rooster painting in my kitchen when I ran a contest– he’s called “Sunshine”, so when I walk into the kitchen in the morning I can say, “Good morning, Sunshine!”

This month, I studied poetry with Vidya Tiru, painting with Amanda Trought, Lily Leung and Alice Girard, retirement plans with Roy Ackerman, spiritual topics with Victoria Juster, and homesteading with Laurie Cover. I went to State Capitols with Samantha Griffin Taki. I studied coffees (yum!) with Tamara Gerber-Stutz, and homemade cooking with Melinda Egger Brown. I learned ingredient swaps for healthy cooking from (Dr.) Dominique Brooks and got vegan recipes from Kimberly Winters. I was inspired by the kitchen refurb Martha DeMeo pulled off; I got gardening inspiration and delicious recipes and so much more from this dear friend. I studied content writing with Bing Aranzano. One extraordinary week, I got to meet Florence Callender, the learning/dyslexia expert, in person, when she came to my city for a conference. We had great fun taking photos of us both– in the same shot! I studied creativity with Julie JordanScott. And of course, I learned cool blogging/blogsite/website pointers from Paul Taubman, The Digital Maestro and our cheerful leader for the UBC.

For the April challenge, I wrote entirely new material every day, and I was more bold in telling my truth. I found I was in The Flow more than ever before. I got noticed, liked, and followed by people I had never heard of. The new material has stoked my Ring of Fire and my healing practice. I’m seeing clients again and working at a higher level. I wonder what will happen in the July challenge??

So this is my last piece for a couple of months. I’m turning my attention to writing for my new website. I hope, in this series, I have greatly convinced many that positive living is the way to be, and it results in greater health and happiness and joy. And that would be me and you, shaping our lives anew, ever more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Kebba Buckley Button is a stress management expert, holistic healer, and award-winning author who celebrates life. She has a longtime natural healing practice and is an ordained minister. Among her books are: Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br), Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire, and Sacred Meditation: Embracing the Divine. The books are available on Amazon and through Kebba’s office. They are also available in Scottsdale, Arizona, at the Franciscan Renewal Center bookstore and at the bookstore at St. Barnabas on the Desert Episcopal Church. Or simply email us to order: kebba@kebba.com . Thank you!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Tea, Cake, and Kindness

29 Friday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in Kebba Buckley Button, Lia's Sunshine Bakery, the life you want, Upbeat Spiritual Living

≈ 8 Comments

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Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, kindness, Lia's Sunshine Bakery, stress, UpBeat Living, Upbeat Spiritual Living

Kindness comes in many packages. One day during grad school, I was very ill but had to get something at a store. I made it to the store and got my item, but I was so weak near the checkout that I had to take a rest. I sat on a low crate, just holding my forehead. Suddenly, I felt a tiny hand gently patting my shoulder. I opened my eyes to see a tiny girl, perhaps 18 months old, looking at me with care and concern. She didn’t have words, but she knew someone was troubled, and she reached out. I said to her, “I’ll be okay. I just don’t feel good. Thank you for your kindness.” And actually, I felt better after our exchange. I still remember the love in that tiny hand, patting my shoulder.

No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted.

In the last 9 months, I have not been my usual chipper self, but often tired due to chemotherapy. I am absolutely blessed that so many have been so kind during this time.

Neighbors have offered to do anything I need.
Friends and church buddies have taken me to chemotherapy, other medical appointments, and errands.
Costco staff helped me figure out the driving cart, so I didn’t have to stand or walk.
The HOA Board decided to continue meetings on Zoom, so I didn’t have to navigate to the Clubhouse or be exposed to extra germs
A friendly acquaintance at Church whispered, “I’ve been praying for you!”
A colleague had Whole Foods Kitchen send me two dinners.

Everyone has been kind, in many ways.

Kindness comes in many forms, but always from the heart.

Yesterday, when I wasn’t expecting any packages, one mysteriously appeared on my doorstep. My tiny friend Lia (age 3) had sent me a care package from across the country! I had seen her recipe for Lemon Cake and said it sounded really good. Also, in talking about tea drinking, I had asked Lia’s G-Grandma, Martha, if she could recommend any particular orange spice tea. (The world of tea has stopped making the one I loved.) So Lia and Martha conspired to send me: lemon cake and tea (in the above photo)! I feel so loved! Of course, I had lemon cake for breakfast this morning, and the tea in the afternoon. Delicious! Notice, also, the package insert for Lia’s Sunshine Bakery? Those butterflies are dimensional stickers. The whole package gave me such a lift. Thank you so much, Lia and Martha!!

So kindness comes in many forms, in many shapes and sizes. It never hurts to try being kind. You never know who will secretly be lifted. And hug all your loved ones while you can. And that would be you, increasingly at peace, Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Magnetism in Our Lives

28 Thursday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in body electricity, magnetic attraction, magnetism, stress, Stress Management, the life you want, Upbeat Spiritual Living

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body electricity, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, magnetic attraction, magnetism, Sacred Meditation, stress, UpBeat Living, Upbeat Spiritual Living

How many times have we heard someone say, “Wow, that guy has a magnetic personality!” And we talk about some people “lighting up the room.” We have all seen toy magnets, or those magnets that hold things onto a frij door or metal cabinet. We know instinctively what magnets are and that they can attract or repel, depending on their orientation. So when we say someone has a magnetic personality, we’re talking about attraction. But we’re not just liking their looks, their sweet voice, and their warm smile. In fact, the human body has electrical circuitry, so maybe you are literally being magnetically drawn to someone. Or repelled.

Yup, your body runs on current, but not the same as your toaster. Now, hands up, everyone who has ever had an EKG or ECG. You had an ELECTRO CARDIOGRAM. You had your electric levels checked. Your heart is a wetware electrical motor, and the EKG/ECG printout was showing the electrical output of your heart. Very informative! The nervous system is the wiring of the body that carries messages from head to toe and from the toes back to the brain. Remember reaching out to shake someone’s hand, and getting a big shock? That was a discharge of electrons (electricity) from one human to another.

Electricity pioneer Nicola Tesla said,

If you want to find the secrets of the Universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.

Remember being told not to stay in the pool when it was raining? That’s because lightening often comes with rain, and lightening is massive discharges of electrons (electricity). And if those discharges connect with your body, you will be zapped, damaged, and even electrocuted. Remember being advised to get off the golf course when rain was coming through? A friend of mine was playing golf with his two brothers, on a Michigan golf course, when it began to rain. My friend quit playing for the day. His brothers stayed to enjoy playing, and both were struck by lightning. Neither brother “was the same again”, and both died young of heart issues. Oh, you mean you can burn a motor with too big an electrical current? Yes.

In Arizona, there are high-capacity electrical transmission lines you can see as you drive along the biggest freeways. These lines, often crossing the most beautiful landscapes, can actually be heard buzzing if you are walking in the area. And warning signs under the lines advise you not to pause under the lines, such as to have a picnic. The lines are, in a sense, leaking electricity. Too much for the human body.

So on the pleasant side, why do humans shake hands? I believe it’s to literally connect with each other’s energy for a moment. Why do people kiss? Do you ever feel “electricity” with your partner? Does your pet like to snuggle with you? You are then in each other’s electrical fields, sharing energies. We’ll talk about chakras, the energy centers, in an upcoming article.

Meanwhile, if you feel repelled by someone’s energy, stay away from them. If it’s raining, stay away from water. If you have electricity with your partner, you know what to do. And hug all your loved ones while you can. And that would be you, increasingly energized, Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Wordless Wednesday Amazing Skies

27 Wednesday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in Dealing with stress, Effective Living, Kebba Buckley Button, LifeTools, skies, stress, the life you want, transform your energy, UpBeat Living

≈ 8 Comments

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Beat stress, Dealing with stress, Energy Transformation Sessions, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, LifeTools, skies, stress, The life you want, transform your energy, UpBeat Living

To study the skies is to witness the miracles of Nature. And whenever we witness miracles, we are transformed. These are all unedited images captured by me. The daytime photo looks almost upside down, as if we are looking at rippling water. The mystic crescent Moon is unusual in the sharpness of the image. The night sky with cloud puffs is a rare view. Then, we have the Full Moon peering out from between trees. Enjoy!

Fall in love with the skies and you will see many miracles. And seeing miracles will lift your vibration and enliven you! Then that will move you more and more into being Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm! And that is what I want for you!

Kebba Buckley Button is a stress management expert, holistic healer, and award-winning author who celebrates life. She has a 30-year natural healing practice and is an ordained minister. Among her books are: Discover The Secret Energized You (http://tinyurl.com/b44v3br), Inspirations for Peace Within: Quotes and Images to Uplift and Inspire, and Sacred Meditation: Embracing the Divine. The books are available on Amazon and through Kebba’s office. They are also available in Scottsdale, Arizona, at the Franciscan Renewal Center bookstore and at the bookstore at St. Barnabas on the Desert Episcopal Church. Or simply email us to order: kebba@kebba.com . Thank you!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Instant Calm for Busy People

26 Tuesday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in calm, Calming, instant calm for busy people, meditation, stress, Stress Management, the life you want, Upbeat Spiritual Living

≈ 8 Comments

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Calm, Calming, Healthy Happy Loving Life, instant calm for busy people, Kebba Buckley Button, meditation, Prayer, Sacred Meditation, stress, UpBeat Living, Upbeat Spiritual Living

Today’s images by megapixl

I recently shared a brief way to break into meditation practice, in 8 quick steps (https://wp.me/pw4HM-1dw). Many loved it, and some said they couldn’t meditate because their minds were too busy, like the yogini above, and just too full of chatter. I promised to write a piece on instant calm for busy people, and that’s what brings us to today. There are many ways I can share, to instantly calm yourself. Here are 3 hand poses that will take you to calm very fast.

1. Gently place your hands together, palms touching. The palms access your central nervous system and calm you instantly. Now exhale. Drop your shoulders. Hold for one minute. Feel the difference. Feel the sides of your head let go and relax. Feel your brain slow down.

2. Place your hands in the classic prayer position, fingers intertwined. You have now connected most of the meridians in your body to each other. Exhale. Drop your shoulders. Hold for one minute. Feel the difference as your whole body calms. Try bringing your hands toward your forehead and leaning in. Feel the difference.

3. Place your hands together, palms touching. Bring this position back to your chest and feel the heart connection. Hold for one minute. Notice your face relaxing. Feel the contrast as your mind, body, and spirit calm down.

Apply these moves whenever you need calm. And let me know (kebba@kebba.com) what you notice in your thoughtstream, your body, and your skin. And that would be you, increasingly Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Many Things Are Not What They Seem

25 Monday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in appearances can be deceiving, Effective Living, Kebba Buckley Button, LifeTools, stress, the life you want, UpBeat Living, weight loss

≈ 12 Comments

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appearances are deceiving, Dealing with stress, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, kindness, LifeTools, stress, The life you want, UpBeat Living

-Image by megapixl

Most of us have at least five good senses, and many have a sixth sense, or intuition, as well. But sometimes our excellent abilities to perceive are fooled—and sometimes royally.

A simple happy example is the case of film sets. Often made to look like a town or neighborhood, they may be flat, single-panel construction. A fun example of this is in the movie, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Near the end, a town falls down and turns out to be a movie set. In The Chelsea Detective, a new series from Acorn TV, everything is filmed outside, in the Chelsea district of London. There is a beautiful, sunny, fresh feeling throughout the episodes. However, one thing is actually a set: the interior of Max’s houseboat. Because of the movement of the tides, the real houseboat rocks. So the houseboat interior was re-created with walls and ceilings that could be switched around, so the cameras could get the right angles and lighting– no rocking.

In Phoenix, Arizona, my late husband managed many rental units. One day, he went to a unit for a routine evaluation of a ceiling fan. The fan would need either repair or replacement. As he left the unit, he heard a terrible sound. The loud, unhappy sound was as if a dog were being tortured. My husband raced to the tall, solid wooden fence from behind which the loud sound was coming. Fearing the worst, he stretched himself up until he could just see over the fence. Surprise! The sound was from two giant tortoises, mating! In fact, they were apparently trumpeting very happy sounds! Take that lesson, humans!

Phaedrus, in the Dialogues of Plato, said:

Things are not always what they seem; the first appearance deceives many; the intelligence of few perceives what has been carefully hidden in the recesses of the mind.

Through business networking, I met a man who talked about his accomplishments in sound engineering. I thought meeting him was no accident because I had created some meditation scripts and wanted someone to do the recording. My husband and I went to his studio and saw an impressive control console. He was also going to convert the beta videotapes of a seminar I had just had filmed, to another format so they could be edited for several uses. I left the tapes with him and took a pink receipt. Soon, the man came to my office and said it was quiet enough to record the meditation CDs there. We recorded them. Soon, he came back with beautiful, professional-looking CDs, labeled and in cases. I was so excited! I thought I had found my sound engineer! Unfortunately, the CDs were unusable. They contained many rattles and knocks. Had he not listened to them? Why did the man not edit those out or request we re-record in a different environment? He never explained and by not replying to calls or emails, he declined to correct the CDs. Oh, and remember the Beta tapes? I could never get him to return my calls after that, so my tapes that cost about $3000 plus a day of effort to record…are out there in the Universe somewhere. An expensive lesson.

-Image by megapixl

There are probably countless examples of people and situations turning out to be other than we thought. And do you have examples you would like to share? I now believe there is no perfect answer to knowing who and what someone or a situation really is. My recommendation is that we approach the fence quietly and look over carefully, before we get into something we might wish we had not. Taking care in situations means you are taking care of your own energy and time. And that is you, ever more Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm! And that is what I want for you.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: 8 Steps to Meditating Today!

24 Sunday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in Divine, knowing our Good is manifesting, meditation, Spirit, stress, Stress Management, the life you want, Upbeat Spiritual Living

≈ 8 Comments

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Divine, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, meditation, Prayer, Sacred Meditation, Spirit, spiritual stress management, stress, UpBeat Living, Upbeat Spiritual Living

-Image by megapixl

How would you like to be so mellow that your shoulder tops feel like pudding? Yet you are not tired, just deeply relaxed? A great way to get there is through meditation. And you don’t have to convert to Hinduism and use Indian words in order to meditate. Meditation is also a Christian practice going back centuries. The current Pope uses the word “meditation” in several ways daily. So don’t worry about your faith origin. If you’ve been curious about meditation, maybe now is the time to give it a whirl.

A major key is to set up a comfortable place to sit, away from distractions, preferably for 20 minutes at a time. For the meditation time to work for you, of course you will close your laptop and turn off your smartphone. Change the lighting to soft. Think of it as a set of agreements you are making with yourself! And the more you meditate, for example twice daily, the more you will feel your thoughts, your body, and even your skin relaxing. This feels so good and so healthy, that you might get addicted to it! There are many sources for meditation music, seats, drums, and electronic devices that are offered as helps for different types of meditation. But I have found that low tech, no-additive meditation is really great: refreshing, inexpensive, no-fuss, and life-changing. The beneficial medical effects of true meditation have been documented since the 1970’s.

Here are 8 steps, to try this amazing practice at home:

Sit in a quiet, undisturbed area, in a comfortable chair. Uncross your legs and place your feet on the floor. Sit up fairly straight; this allows the spinal energy to flow well. You may want to be barefoot.
Select some quiet music or turn on a humming room fan if something is needed to screen background noise. To use music or not is up to personal preference.
Exhale and drop your shoulders. Find a comfortable balance in your posture.
Notice your shoulders releasing tension and dropping pleasantly.
Set a pleasant-sounding timer and continue your meditation for 15-20 minutes. Notice how your different body/mind/heart/spirit systems are responding. You may find your eyes are pleasantly streaming tears and your entire system has a deep sense of relaxation. Your breathing may be much more comfortable.
After your selected time, gently open your eyes. If you have trouble opening your eyes, rub your hands together until they are warm, then hold them to your eyes for a half minute or so.
Gently allow your system to come back into consciousness. Take your time.
Journal your observations and realizations for a few minutes. Notice any change in your body, your spiritual perspective or sense of connection.

Let me know (kebba@kebba.com) what you notice in your thoughtstream, your body, and your skin. Has your sense of stress shifted? Notice any changes in your relationship to stress over the next week or month. Notice if some of your routine aches and/or pains are subsiding. Now you are in Upbeat Spiritual Living^sm! To learn more about the history and types of meditation, you may want to check out my book, Sacred Meditation.

And that would also be you, increasingly Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm!

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Souper Saturday

23 Saturday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in broccoli cheese soup GF, Effective Living, Kebba Buckley Button, the life you want, UpBeat Living

≈ 6 Comments

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broccoli cheese soup GF, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, The life you want, UpBeat Living

Bowl of Broccoli Cheese Soup (GF) -Image by megapixl

Nothing beats homemade food, made the way you love it, especially on a quiet Saturday night. So today I’m sharing my secret formula for Broccoli-Potato-Cheese soup! Especially if you love broccoli or love potassium, this could be your new favorite soup.

Kebba’s Broccoli-Potato-Cheese Soup (GF)

2 lb organic potatoes, cubed and boiled with a little sea salt and fresh ground pepper

1 12-oz bag frozen chopped mirepoix vegetables (or finely chop 12 oz of onion, carrot, and celery)

1/2 gallon organic milk, 2 % or 4 %

10 oz sharp cheddar cheese, such as Tillamook, grated or cut in little pieces.

8-12 oz of chopped organic broccoli, raw or frozen

Saute’ the 12 oz veggies until tender. Drain the potatoes and stir them into the veggies adding 1 qt of the organic milk. Use a stick blender to puree. Stand by with the rest of the milk in case the mixture gets thicker than you like. (I like it very thick.) Gently stir in the cheese until melted. This is KEBBA’S FAMOUS POTATO-CHEESE SOUP! Stop here if you hate broccoli.

If you love broccoli (and I do passionately), add the broccoli now, and stir gently about 5 minutes, until the broccoli turns dark green. Take a bite to be sure it’s as tender as you like. Add a bit more sea salt if needed. Sea salt has a fuller flavor than table salt, so you will need less. (Try it!)

Serve it in pretty bowls with more cheddar, shredded, on top. If you have any left over, it freezes well. Enjoy!

And notice how good you feel after eating a huge serving of this soup? And that will be you, moving ever more into being Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm! And that is what I want for you.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Getting to Love Your Home

22 Friday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in Effective Living, Kebba Buckley Button, konmari, Love your home, Marie Kondo, the life you want, UpBeat Living, weight loss

≈ 5 Comments

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Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, konmari, Love your home, Marie Kondo, stress, The life you want, UpBeat Living

I have owned and enjoyed my condo for 18 years. After I did a basic job of decorating, and laid in some basic landscaping for the back yard, I started dating the man who would become my husband. We married, he moved in, and there was a lot more Stuff. We thought, oh, we’ll just try this living-together-in-1000-square feet thing while we look for, say, a 3 bedroom 2 bath place with a large garage. And we did look for something larger, but we never got serious about it. In a sense, we downsized before it was popular. We made our decision right before the Tiny House Revolution, which you can see on HGTV in a few forms.

My husband and I enjoyed over 15 years together in our small space. He then had a health crash and passed last summer. Family helped me divest his business gear I would never use, and I traded a huge collection of fine tools to a contractor friend for the labor on a couple of projects. To love my home, I wanted more light, more white, a larger tub, and much less Stuff.

The tub was switched for a larger “soaker” tub with new tile trim.
The vanities were switched from butter yellow 1980-styles with scuffed maple-ish cabinets, to all white with all white.
The bedroom got hardwood floors and over half the Stuff donated. A few computers were (safely) passed on.
The bedroom got a smaller bed, giving the feeling that the room had grown.
Dozens of boxes of shredding have gone to be professionally powdered.
Today a deep rolltop desk left, and a small shelf unit arrived to replace it. The whole living room feels lighter and more spacious with that one thick object gone.
Today I found about 1 cubic foot of photos that no one will ever need or want to see again. That one couple’s stunning wedding photos don’t matter now, with the divorce having been final years ago. (Secretly, I will share several images with their grown sons.) I pulled about 15 prints out of the collection of hundreds, several as excuses to get back in touch with old friends.

I’m making huge progress, layer by layer. My home now has less than 1/3 of what it contained 9 months ago. You know what Marie Kondo, AKA “KonMari”, would say. Her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, is probably the Bible of decluttering. She would say, clean up, clear up, and keep only what you love. I’m keeping the condo, which I love. I’m keeping the Feng Shui Garden, which I love. I’m keeping about ¼ of the clothes I used to own, and I love what I have kept. I’m keeping all of the décor colors and the art, and very few of the files. And I’m keeping all the lovely SPACE. And making more.

As you look around your house, what would it take for you to love it? Just cleaning? Donating a car load? Better lighting? Different tub? Clean windows, or larger replacement windows? New European coffeemaker? Soft recliner? Brighter, more coordinated color scheme? Wide wooden blinds? Ceiling fans? Sit with a pad and pen, your iPhone Notes section, or even your journal. Ask yourself these questions and discover both the answers and the other questions that come up. Write down any random ideas that come to you. Keep that place bookmarked, so you can add more as you realize more about what you want, later.

You may be amazed at the freedom that comes with consulting with yourself. Then pick one thing to make happen, say, each week. And really do it! Then enjoy loving your home and feeling the energy that feeds you. And that will be you, moving ever more into being Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm! And that is what I want for you.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

Healthy Happy Loving Life: Kindness for Hurt

21 Thursday Apr 2022

Posted by Kebba Buckley Button in Effective Living, Kebba Buckley Button, kindness, LifeTools, National Stress Month, stress, the life you want, UpBeat Living, weight loss

≈ 7 Comments

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Dealing with stress, Healthy Happy Loving Life, Kebba Buckley Button, kindness, LifeTools, National Stress Month, stress, The life you want, UpBeat Living

-Image by megapixl

I had a powerful experience yesterday, on a grocery shopping trip in Famous Big Store. Grocery shopping is supposedly a mundane activity. And I was tired when I went. I like the grocery selection in this Famous Big Store—let’s call it FBS for now—and so it was well worth pushing my afternoon energy level to make that trip and get the groceries I knew I would enjoy. FBS wasn’t crowded, and I easily found the items I wanted, right where they usually are displayed.

When others needed to navigate their carts near mine, everyone was very pleasant, and each second close encounter made me and them smile. The traffic has to be part of the fun, right? They didn’t know their smiles were making the trip easier for a woman who is often exhausted, majors in resting and goes for chemo too often.

-Image by megapixl

Cart fairly full, I advanced on the checkout lanes and took my best guess as to the line that would be shortest. Sometimes my energy crashes fast, and I wanted to get through the line and off to my car, before that struck. I was nearing my 1-hour horizon for being on my feet, albeit for a lovely grocery trip. I found a line with a cashier I hadn’t met before. No one was behind me except a 40-something woman considering the end display, holding only 2 or 3 small-child clothing items. I was feeling relaxed, and I was struck with the irresistible urge to invite her to check out ahead of me. Choosing to be brave, I spoke to the woman. It went something like this:

Me: Excuse me…Would you …like to go before me?

She with 3 items of tiny children’s clothes: in disbelief, well, I might…

Me gesturing. I have a bunch of things.

She: well OK…

Me: You just have several items…

She (accepting my offer): brightening. (Tiny clothes get checked out in seconds.) Well, thank you!!

Me: Of course! Take care. (woman goes, in a stream of happiness with a radiant smile)

-Image by megapixl

Cashier: that was really kind of you. Not like some of the behavior I’ve seen here today.

Me: Oh really? (Cashier nods deeply.)( I pause and she does not elaborate, but she shakes her head a bit and blinks, as if to shake off some rudeness she has received.) There’s a lot of hurt that people are carrying these days…

Cashier: face opening: yes!

Me: You know, they may be in pain, or they just found out they had cancer…

Cashier: or their child has something..

Me: Oh yes! We never know. And so often it comes out as grumpy or angry.

Cashier: or they didn’t get the promotion.

Me: And they were counting on the extra money.

Cashier: (puts my bags in my cart) I thank her saying my back appreciates that)

Me: It’s nice talking with you.

She: It’s nice talking with you, too. (BIG SMILE.)

I hope I see her again. The kind cashier did not know she was talking to a chemo patient, who is in pain, and whose husband died several months ago. She only knew she was talking to someone who understood pain and kindness—someone who really heard her frustration about her day—someone who knew her humanity and spoke with her as a fellow soul.

When we are face-to-face with another person, we can never know their whole story. We may only have seconds to be with them. Why not assume that, whatever challenges you and I are facing, this person in front of us has some of their own. Why not be kind—be generous with your smiles and your gentle listening. You may be amazed. And that will be you, moving ever more into being Healthy Happy and Loving Life^sm! And that is what I want for you.

Books by Kebba Buckley Button

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