Author: Ki McGraw

After last night’s Halloween celebration, today we venerate the Saints. Being raised as a Catholic, I always had a fascination for their stories. Researching and studying them continues long after I left the church.

Their miraculous stories inspire faith. I have learned to invoke them for specific purposes and to honor them in the way that they relate to.  As I remove the jack-o’-lanterns and ghosts, I light my candles to celebrate them, thank them, and set intentions for a new moon .

 As you clear away the Halloween festivities, what intentions would you like to set for the next month? Where would you shine your light to dispel darkness? Ki to Happiness thanks all the Saints for their divine intercession and grows in faith.

Tonight’s festivities on Halloween are originally meant to clear the energy for tomorrow’s feast for All Saints. Whether we observe with costumes, skeletons, pumpkins, black cats, and pointy hats or not, the veil is thin between the physical and non physical worlds right now. Especially with the new moon upon us, how we observe these days will be affecting the future.

The most stress inducing election in our country of recent times occurs soon. Tempers flare, mailboxes have been set on fire in two states, and hypersensitivity to any word choice fill the news. Becoming conscious of these energies, we may be able to choose peace and union, and move away from the unconscious projections of war and division.

How will you observe this Halloween?What would you like the outcome of these energies to result in next month and beyond? Ki to Happiness clears the energy in preparation for celebrating the many Saints who inspire, heal and guide us toward peace.

The red maple trees are bursting with their true colors on our block as geraniums are still offering red blooms. Summers end blends into deep fall, with sun breaks and warmth as well as rain, wind and darkness. Life and death are holding hands, full of energy that transcends the physical manifestations.

Yoga reminds us with every practice to stay centered on our truest intentions, come what may. Conscious breathing, balancing postures on arms or one leg, and meditation give us feedback about how to improve ourselves to stay aligned with the Everlasting energy we most essentially are. We are both flowers and fall foliage, light and dark, life and death, as we identify with our Highest Self and its energy.

What feedback has your practices been giving you? How can you align with your Everlasting energy? Ki to Happiness receives feedback and aligns with its Guidance.

At a Halloween party a long time ago, I made new friends with whom I still have contact. We each coupled up for a time with others who attended that party. Although the couplings dissolved, the true friendships continue.

As we celebrate this friendship anniversary today, I’ve heard back from four others who attended that momentous gathering. Over the years, we have shared pictures and memories of that evening. We have also made lots of new memories since that time, deepening our bonds.

Do you still have contact with your old friends? Are you deepening your bonds with them or have the years divided you? Ki to Happiness is grateful for the internet for making it possible to sustain friendships across the miles and decades.

As a tribute to the Grateful Dead’s bassist, Phil Lesh, I played guitar and sang some of his songs. He has exited his physical body at age 84. I’m blessed to have seen him multiple times, including most recently in 2018 with my brother.

As a young deadhead, I danced with his bass line as if it animated my spine. I played Box of Rain with it pouring down outside yesterday, tears flowing in joyous memories of times in our cover band which we called Shotgun Ragtime Band. My fingers responded to the spine’s signals and my voice channeled the lyrics and melody, setting free the vibration to unite with all the other Deadheads honoring him.

Did you ever go to a Grateful Dead concert?  What music in your life has inspired unity, connectedness, and togetherness? Ki to Happiness is grateful to live with memories of the Dead.

My meditations of late have revealed Guidance to tune up some aspects of my lifestyle. Like everyone else, changing habits is challenging for me. My recommended changes may seem small to others, yet they still require attention, consciousness, and uncomfortable choices.

For the last five days, I have tuned up my bed time habits, relinquishing my noise cancelling headset. I have also instigated new exercises and different food choices. I’m listening to my body mind more closely and am grounding all Guidance in my actions and attitudes.

What do you need to tune up? How comfortable can you be with being uncomfortable? Ki to Happiness comforts the discomforts with commitment to tune up habits in alignment with new Guidance.

This morning’s warmer temperature is accompanied by gentle rain. Lots of leaves fell down in the wind that came with this weather system. Our deck is carpeted in red, crimson, and orange maple leaves.

The cats and I bask in the moist air with our windows open. Soon, I will close the windows so to warm our home and studio. The freshness will linger to bless this new day. 

What helps you start a new day? What do you need to release so that you can come into the present moment of each new days’ opportunity? Ki to Happiness opens the windows and breathes consciously in gratitude for so many blessings.

Our studio manager attended class last night. It was great to see her and thank her for all her efforts to support HYC.  The best part was simply practicing together.

I enjoy the benefits of practicing alone, however, the benefits multiplying when meditating, praying or moving our bodies in similar ways with others. The sense of community, connection and camaraderie extend beyond the experience. Rippling outward, we affect broader reaches of our influence.

Can you stay committed to your practice whether you do it alone or with others? What benefits do you observe either way? Ki to Happiness benefits from practicing whether alone or with others.

Our studio manager attended class last night. It was great to see her and thank her for all her efforts to support HYC.  The best part was simply practicing together.

I enjoy the benefits of practicing alone, however, the benefits multiplying when meditating, praying or moving our bodies in similar ways with others. The sense of community, connection and camaraderie extend beyond the experience. Rippling outward, we affect broader reaches of our influence.

Can you stay committed to your practice whether you do it alone or with others? What benefits do you observe either way? Ki to Happiness benefits from practicing whether alone or with others.

When in need of assistance, I have learned to reach out and ask.  Sometimes my physical helpers don’t call back or are ill equipped. In such circumstances, I petition the patron saints for Divine Intervention. 

It’s important to surrender the issues and outcomes to a Higher Principle in faith that all will develop correctly in right timing. Watching for signs of Grace, I have witnessed those prayers be answered in spontaneous phone calls, and solutions appearing easily with no need to force, push or insist. Acting on those answers in gratitude, the way forward appears.

Are you willing to ask for help?  Can you receive the help in the way it arrives? Ki to Happiness asks for help through prayer and listens for Guidance in meditation.