A Spiritually Enlightening Online Magazine. January Theme: "Peace"
Volume 2 Issue 2 ISSN# 1708-3265

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Illuminations Aleesha Stephenson About the Cover Aleesha Stephenson A Visit with the Dalai Lama Peter Moore Is it Inner Peace, or Mental Numbness? Rev. Cheryl Jewett Protect Coral Reefs - Don't Buy an SUV David Suzuki PhD In Keeping with Fish Monica Lane Finding Peace when an Animal Friend Dies Rita M. Reynolds Reflexology - The Peaceful Warrior Yvette Eastman Replacing Inner Conflict with Inner Harmony Lisa Sidorowicz, M.A., B.Ed. The Envelope, Please… Featuring: Sebastian MacPhee Technically Tarot Jeannette Roth Lifetalks Dawn Baumann Brunke Tales of a Country Vet Dr. Bruce Burton DVM Aunty Nasty Nasturtium Blackwitt Walk Your Talk Aleesha Stephenson Meditate a Moment Featuring: Aleesha Stephenson Poetic License Featuring: Jennifer Monaghan Aquarium Plant Paradise Takashi Amano Aquarium Fishes of the World Dr. Herbert R. Axelrod Liber T Roberto Negrini Bohemian Cats' Tarot Karen Mohony and Alex Ukolov Feng Shui Tarot Eileen and Peter Paul Connolly Synthesis & Counseling in Astrology - The Professional Manual Noel Tyl

Finding that quiet, still place within us can be a challenge in our 9 - 5 daily lives of work, play and 'getting everything done'. You get up early, leave for work - perhaps fighting traffic and red lights… then you put in your hours and find yourself back on the same roads heading home again. Unfortunately the 'cleaning fairies' didn't arrive while you were gone and do the laundry or the dishes, and the toilets still need cleaning! Where in this day-to-day life are you supposed to find five minutes of peace?

When my eldest daughter was little we used to read a book together called "Five Minute's Peace" by Jill Murphy. It's about a mother elephant who wants five minutes of peace from her children. She attempts to create it for herself and ends up being thankful for the three minutes and forty-five seconds of peace she DOES create in the end. Because of this story, we always used the phrase, "I need five minute's peace" when we needed to be alone and gather our sanity. But honestly we all need a lot more than five minutes of peace to function on a daily basis… but let's face it, five minutes is a start!

I thought I would make a list of all the places I find "five minute's peace" and perhaps you can add to it, personalizing it to your own life and lifestyle - and you may find you have a lot more peace than you first thought.

When my alarm goes off in the morning I make my way into the bathroom. I sit down and begin my day with a grounding exercise, assisting myself to begin in a centred, relaxed state.

When I get to work, I find a moment of quiet before I begin working - to clear the commute from my mind. Personally, whenever possible I take the longer route to work, which is devoid of traffic and filled with nature. I follow a winding road alongside a river and enjoy the wildlife and picturesque scenery. Leaving 10 minutes earlier to relax on my drive instead of taking the busier, faster route is a wonderful start to my day.

During my break, I close my eyes and reground myself. A short visualization of myself resting beside a tree, gazing into a pond, viewing my reflection in the water… is very refreshing. If my day is particularly stressful, I take an extra moment to dive into the pond and do a short cleansing, allowing the water to wash the stress from my body, mind and soul.

At the end of my day, as I lay in bed at night… I listen to a CD of nature's sounds. I love "Garden of Serenity". I spend 30-60 minutes every night - 'Reiki-ing' myself - meditating - and remembering the moments of my day for which I'm grateful. The smile of a customer, a blue heron catching it's dinner… whatever those moments are, I replay them in my mind and thank the Goddess for assisting me in seeing them - because we all have those wonderful moments, but do we focus on them or the negative ones? After all, it's our choice. We can allow our minds to highlight either the 'yuck' or the 'light' of our day. I prefer to highlight the joy.

Now, what do you do to find your peace?



Aleesha Stephenson is the Publisher, Editor, Graphic and Web Designer as well as a Regular Columnist for Timeless Spirit Magazine.

She is also the Executive Director and Publicist for "Magi's Magick Spells".

An Eclectic Wiccan Practitioner, Reiki Master/Teacher and Faery Shaman, she home-schools two of her three spiritually enlightened children as her eldest has graduated and moved on to the school of life. Friend (and mother) to them all, she is also a life-partner to her husband David. Her life truly is filled with light.

You can contact Aleesha via email.

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