In Honor of Norway

So often people get trapped into thinking that one person is more spiritual than another because they follow a specific religious dogma or faith, but as I repeatedly say to audiences around the world: Where is God not?

- Dr. John Demartini

After the New York Times confirmed that an Islamic group was behind the Norway bombings, I wept inside.  I follow no religion.  When I'm asked what I believe in, I simply say, I believe in a divine power/order.  Even the word "God" to me sounds a bit dogmatic.  At least in my own head, when I think of "God" I think of an old, white bearded man, watching from above - an image that was implemented in my brain during my elementary school years in a Catholic school in Brazil.  The same school where I saw my father for the last time as he was kidnapped around the corner from it and subsequently shot to death in a nearby empty lot.  I have no religion, but I do have faith.  

Almost 30 years later, I understand many things that I couldn't possibly fathom as a 7 year old, but one thing I knew back then, and still believe in today, no God, in any religion, condones killing of innocent people for his purpose.  With that said, I am a supporter of all people who believe and follow all religions, as long as they respect my choice to not be dogmatic or ritualistic.  I do believe love is the answer and ego gets in the way of many preachers (of all faiths).  

"Today, free government was attacked, freedom of association was attacked, the spirit of youth was attacked. But we will kick back and say that these are values that are dear to us, and we intend to defend them and Norway will be recognizable tomorrow as the Norway our friends and partners around the world have known so far." - Oslo Mayor Fabian Stang

The attack, today, on a country who is so inclined to promote peace brought me back memories of 9/11.  I don't blame the Muslim religion, but I do think a group of fanatics can brain wash young minds and fill them with so much hatred that horrendous acts happen.  It has happened repeatedly in history where a group of people believe to be superior than everybody else and slandering and slaughtering of a race/religious groups/ethnic groups occur.  I find it terribly upsetting and wonder, "Will it ever stop?"  Even though, my cynicism with the world at moments like these overpower my sense of optimism, I desperately strive to believe that "Yes, it will change one day."  As Dr. Demartini eloquently stated, "Where is God not?"  My hope is that one day all groups of all faiths and beliefs will come to this mutual understanding and agreement.  

I pray for all Norwegians and their families tonight.  

 

Moving From The Inside Out - THE MOVEMENT WITHIN

Once in a while we come across people who are real movers.  People who take "living" to a whole 'nother level.  These people have a gift and they make it a point in their lives to share their gift with their world.  They look at you and see themselves also.  They understand.  They feel.  They relate.  One of these people is April Claxton, founder of The Movement Within.  


After my awesome cruise around the Western Caribbean with Hay House, my life took an incredible turn towards my innermost dreams.  I was being coached by Vanessa Talbot (Writers' Success Creation Coach) and she had told me that writers often speak in public.  I needed to start looking into some speaking engagements for myself.  The Universe took action right away.  In less than a week, I came across April's page on Facebook and went to one of her classes which were held at Modern Zen (Davie, FL) at the time.  After meeting April, she invited me to come back the following week and be a guest speaker in her class.  The topic was GRATITUDE.  


April is an Intuitive Life Coach, Author, Inspirational Speaker, and superb human being.  I believe greatly in intuition, hence The Voice Within, but April is pretty phenomenal.  The Sunday prior to me speaking in her class, I asked her for an intuitive reading.  It was during the summer of 2010.  Prior to leaving my house that day and after the reading was done.  April looked at me and said, "The angels are asking me to tell you about "Stacy"."  I had no idea who "Stacy" was, so I shrugged the information off.  As soon as I saw her to the door and came to my computer to check my emails, my mom had sent me an email about my to-be daughter, whose name was Anastasia, but the nurses in the hospital where she was born referred to her as "Tasi".  I will never forget that day.  


One morning, as Tasi slept and I watched her in wondrous awe, feeling deep love and gratitude for her presence in my life, I remembered the day when April told me about her before I even knew she existed.  I decided to interview April and let a little more of the world know what she does and how incredibly well she does it.  Below is the interview.  Please keep in mind my initials are CA and April's are AC.  Enjoy!! 

C.A. - WHAT IS AN INTUITIVE LIFE COACH?

A.C. - I believe an ILC is one who is able to intuitively guide, direct and support their clients through their own revolutionary life journey. An ILC offers divine intuitive information that comes through for the client without judgment and offers support through simply holding the space for the client to connect with his/ her loved ones, Spirit Guides and Angels. Divine messages also include tools that are relevant to each client in order for them to grow, learn and evolve. An ILC is also one who takes their position to heart. Clients place their own hearts in our hands, and I do not take this lightly. An ILC should do all they can to insure that they are strictly being used to heal and assist instead of doing the healing and assisting themselves.  

C.A. - HOW LONG HAVE YOU KNOWN THAT YOU HAVE THIS GIFT AND HOW DID YOU FIND OUT?

A.C. - I have known that "something" was "different" in me since I was little. The older I got, the more I realized I wasn't different at all. We all have this ability- just some are more in tune than others. I found out exactly how I was being called to use this ability while I was experiencing my own healing. It is often when we arrive at the bottom of the barrel that we discover exactly who we are and who we want to be. It is when we are unable to fly that we discover we truly have wings. 

C.A. - WHAT IS THE MOVEMENT WITHIN?

A.C. - When I arrived at "the bottom of the barrel," I began to Move Within. I had to. All that we will ever need is within us. I had to figure out how I worked and didn't work- how I felt and didn't feel- what was mine to work with and what wasn't mine to work with. I realized that I wasn't broken and I began to journal and journal and journal. I discovered that I had been "speaking" to Divine sources (from within me) through my writing. I filled journals upon journals of detailed messages about humanity, lessons, goals, life, family, love... It became apparent to me that I wanted God/ Source/ Spirit- your God, my God- to use me as a direct channel of information and messages to help others move within themselves as well. If I could discover my purpose and my own values of self, and if that could inspire me to make a difference in my own life, then imagine what the same thing could do for someone else! And The Movement Within was born. It was actually called Inner Hope in the beginning but I believe that website was already taken. When I asked my Guides what to call it instead, they stated in writing, "The Movement Within." Life requires movement. Growth requires movement. The best type of movement will always start and take place within.   

C.A. - WHAT IS THE GOAL OF THE MOVEMENT WITHIN?

A.C. - This is a great question. The goal of TMW is its motto: Lifting Humanity. One Heart at a Time. It only takes one heart to be inspired to dance to the beat of its own drum in order to create a ripple effect for others. It's simple. As my Guides said in a journaling 

C.A. - WHAT IS YOUR SOURCE OF INSPIRATION IN LIFE?

A.C. - My source of inspiration is the world around me. The pain, the suffering, the hurting, the life, the love, the hopes, the dreams... that inspires me to love more and lift more. I am a bleeding heart and even though I cannot do the healing for people, I still long to teach others how to learn to heal themselves. Healing feels good- especially when we each do our own work from the inside out. What an empowering feeling! 

C.A. - WHAT IS THE MISSION YOU WANT TO ACCOMPLISH WITH ALL THAT YOU DO?

A.C. - My mission is to simply make a positive difference in the world so that the bits of the world I do touch feel the love that DOES exist. The world is only as dark as we see it to be. I see bright colors of joy, life- butterflies that flutter by to make us smile, moments of choice that are there to enlighten and encourage, peace, serenity, hope.... My mission is hope.  

C.A. - WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM YOUR WORK?

A.C. - Anyone who wants to. Anyone who feels "pulled" to "something" that is calling them. Anyone who says, "You know what? I don't know what is happening within me or my life- but SOMETHING is happening and I need to find out!" Each of us is called, not to find our purpose and save the world, but to find our purpose and love ourselves. In doing this, we save the world. Anyone who knows that the world has love within it and they feel pulled to this- no matter how broken, lost, confused, sad, scared, and unsure or disconnected they feel- these are the ones who benefit from this work. It is not my work- I am simply a torch holder who passes on the torch. It is the work of the Self and God/ Spirit/ Source is the light.  

C.A. - WHY WOULD THEY GO TO YOU?

A.C. - People "end up" in front of me. I often hear, "I just found you." Or, "My friend referred you." It is interesting how Source/ Spirit/ God will bring people to me. People would come to me to hear what it is they are supposed to hear right now at this point in time in their lives from their Guides, God, Angels and Loved Ones. They would come for support, direction, encouragement, validation, hope, clarity... And then I send them on their way to KEEP MOVING. They come back for touch ups, but- and as much as love and appreciate my clients- it is also my goal that they continue on their paths without me. They can return as needed, but I cannot do the work for them. They must learn to do the work for themselves. This is where the treasures are. People usually feel connected to me. I think it is because through the sessions, they feel themselves for the first time. They feel their courage, strength and they find their own hopes. It's like the scene in Bambi when Bambi walks for the first time. He falls but eventually he gets up and can walk all on his own. I want to bring people to their feet and then I want them to walk on their own and then run and then dance! 

C.A. - TELL ME ABOUT YOUR BOOKS AND HOW YOU WERE INSPIRED TO WRITE THEM.

A.C. - I have written 3 so far. The first was 'The Movement Within: 8 Steps To Ignite The Movement Within.' This teaches you how to begin and experience your own Movement Within. I was inspired to write this when I was asked to speak to a group of young boys and girls who were in a lock up facility. I thought God was crazy for sending me there to speak to amazing children who have experienced many less than amazing lives. I sat down and said, "OK, God, what do you want ME to tell THEM?" And the 8 steps were born. As time went on, these steps became a class that I taught and then evolved into a book. 

The second book was 'The Power of Self-Love: A Mini Book, Because a Little Goes a Long Way." It is a smaller book with big font so that you can read it in under an hour. It is cute and funny and deep. It brings you to your inner child. It has an exercise that introduces you to him/ her. Without our inner child, we would not be. I wrote this first as an E-book and then had it published. I wanted to give something back to my clients and those who visited the website. And, voila! It is on the homepage of TheMovementWithin.com free for download. 

And the third book is my favorite! It is a children's book that has been endorsed by New York Times bestselling author, Melody Beattie and also TV Guide Network. It also allowed me to become a part of the StoneWall National Museum and Archives Distinguished Author Series. 'Goodnight Just The Same' was illustrated by Diane Koziol Krueger and together we created a book that does one simple thing: it nurtures EVERY family dynamic telling each and every child that they matter and their family IS normal. The moon cares not your name or location or family type. It tucks everyone in just the same. I wrote this because I was raised in a divorced household with a step-parent. I also have a daughter who is being raised in a "non-traditional" family environment as well. I realized that all of these situations are normal and traditional! Every book was read to me or that I read to my daughter always had a mom and a dad. That unfortunately is no longer the "norm" in our society today. EVERY child needs to feel as if they are right where they are supposed to be and they ARE normal. And so, Goodnight Just The Same was written.   

C.A. - HOW WOULD YOU LIKE APRIL AND HER LEGACY TO BE REMEMBERED? 

A.C. - So, this question has made me tear up a little. I just want people to remember me and think, 'She loved life. She taught me that life is within me and that I am alive too! How great it was to meet or know her." That's it. I want people to see life through me. I want to be the mirror in which they can see themselves for the first time and then are able to go and not just live but truly come alive within their own lives. That is how I want to be remembered. I want be the April who created a Movement of Self and Love. 

C.A. - FINALLY, IF YOU COULD BE HEARD BY EVERY SINGLE BEING IN THE UNIVERSE, WHAT WOULD YOUR 30 SEC. MESSAGE BE?

A.C. - This is it folks. We are here together for a reason. We can either use this lifetime to experience life through each other or we can lose the lesson. Life is what you make it and however you make it will create your life. Let go. Let love. Let life. Let. Go. 

(I love this answer by the way.  Love it with all my heart. -c.a.)




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Thank you, April, for taking the time to answer the questions.  One of my questions made you tear up, all of your answers brought tears to my eyes.  I have a seven video series that gives 7 steps to learning how to listen to your own Voice Within, and the last step is TAKE ACTION.  In other words, for anything in our lives to happen, we need to take action, start moving, and it starts within.  


I strongly encourage everyone to visit The Movement Within website, and the Facebook page.  The Movement Within also has a channel on YouTube under the same name and April has a radio show on CBS NewSkyRadio.com, that airs on Mondays at 6pm, EST.  In case you feel inspired to purchase April's books, I included the Amazon.com link to each one of them, correspondingly.  

I believe April is just beginning.  She is a force to be reckoned with.  She is an inspiration to all of us.  Start moving and check her out.  

Explore Gratitude

Due to the recent health issues that arose, posted in the previous blog Living My Element With Sylwia - Day 9-14, I will not be able to participate in that extraordinary event.

April & Carla have created an amazing day full of incredible activities to take you to the next level.  Please don't miss out.  Or, you will be missing out.

For more info please go to www.themovementwithin.com.

xxx
Go explore.  Show up.  Be grateful.