Leanne Margaret

This week, I've been contemplating what I want to do with this blog. Moving house naturally invokes the process of life review. Mostly, I'm pleased with the writer's life I have built for myself; and will be carrying it forward into my new home. But it seems like good time to review this blog. The main energy I wish to invoke into my new life is that of ease and peace. So this blog needs to reflect that. It's a place where everything needs to come together into something cohesive. Something that makes sense. Something that reflects all that I do and plan to do in a way that makes it easy for people to find. My energy can be spread so thin sometimes that it disappears into a tendril without solidity. It means that I skim over the top of too many tasks, and discover things later than I could. Like the comments section on this blog. I knew it was there, but I had never incorporated its management into my regular work habits. Today, as I procrastinated starting this blog po

Eight years ago I started this blog with a post about my introduction to  apartment life . Now I'm standing on the cusp between two lives, as I prepare to move home again in ten day's time. Anyone familiar with my journey will know that living in my current home hasn't been easy. It has however been a succinct teacher, illuminating me to the most difficult aspects of my own nature; parts of me that had disappeared into the background as white noise, barely audible under the cacophony of the external dramas in my life. As the fallout from my second divorce slowly—too slowly—ebbed away, I began to realise that the angry situations invoked by my marriages were just tips of the tongues of angry flames that went way back in time. I was left with myself, intolerant and angry—triggered by the sounds around me.  Although it has been a difficult environment to live in, I feel like I've been through a major period of personal and creative development. When I moved here I was focu

An excerpt from book The Love of the Universe . Read it slowly, feeling the meaning of each word with each of your senses.  The power isn't in the words, but how you use them; let them settle—opening your mind towards extraordinary sensing.  Remember to practice your new craft, so that it grows stronger. An eg: With eyes closed, practice reaching into a bag of M&Ms, pick one and guess what colour you might have in your hand.  The results might surprise you, but if you are too sceptical, the activation of your left brain will distract from the right hemisphere. So please approach this exercise with an open, relaxed mind.  Page 206: Psychic Development Contemplation Poem  'See with your mind Hear with your mind Feel and touch with mind.  Feel with your hands See with your hands Hear and receive with hands. Hear with your ears Feel with your ears See and imagine with ears. See with your eyes hear with your eyes Feel and perceive with eyes. Listen with your skin Sense with your

New Moon is my favourite time of year, not just because it's always near my birthday, but because it's when I give my imagination space to soar into new possibilities. Each new moon inspires my mind to gently plant the seeds of growth that I intend nurturing for the coming year. Gently is the keyword, because for many people, new moon isn't the most energising of lunar phases. The light is low to remind you to rest, like the moonlight rests out of sight. As you rest, the mind is free to mull over what you wish to bring into your life.  "What do you hope to bring into your life?" What do you hope to bring into your life? Find the date on the chart below that corresponds with your sun sign, and prepare yourself to withdraw from the world at that time and visualise your plans come to being. If you keep written business plans or lists of personal goals, the new moon in your sign is the best time to review them. This is not the time to march out into the world and move

Anyone who read my very first blog post on this site back in 2014, will know that I had some trouble adapting to apartment life. Readers may have wondered whether I would be able to sustain it. Well, I did—for a while. In fact, I lasted seven years—a lot longer than I thought I would.  Seven is a mystical number that expresses the energy of learning through experience. This kind of learning isn't always comfortable, and often involves sacrifice. It took time for me to grow comfortable with the idea of relinquishing the family home, and all the stuff I'd accumulated. I grieved for my big house, even though I knew intuitively that I was moving forward. As I reduced my physical load to a density that my new apartment could hold, my spirit expanded. I felt free enough from domestic distractions to be able to focus on my creative work, and my healing from PTSD; which I felt were inextricably linked.  But when I realised how noisy my new home was, I wondered if I could focus. Relucta

The world has grown noisier since Melbourne's long lockdown began. It shouldn't—the roads are generally more quiet. But major railway construction is taking place a few blocks away, diverting traffic up my street; bringing more noise into my world. Another growth opportunity—yay! Sensitivity to noise is one of my more visible anxiety symptoms. It's visible by my posts on social media, by my hands over my ears as loud cars drive by, and by the 'conversations' I've had with my neighbour over their distressed dog. Otherwise, I keep these signs to myself; mostly anyway. Social sensitivity is another. I take on people's stuff too much and allow it to affect my sense of peace. Not as much as I used to—I'm more aware now! But enough that social interactions can sometimes leave me overstimulated or exhausted. So the social isolation of being in lockdown isn't as unpleasant as it could be. And besides—people are pretty passionate at the moment! I'm replen

To say that many Melbournians are feeling a little maddened by our sixth lockdown would be an understatement. Social media posts are showing us starting to come apart at the seams, bickering amongst ourselves like grounded teenagers.  To be honest, life isn't so different for me. I still went to the shops, like a normal Friday. But I'm frustrated by my efforts at trying to teach new classes in belly dance and tarot. I started with two brand new groups, after months of marketing—and now our term of classes has been stalled until who knows when. So rather than dwelling on a feeling of treading water, surrounded by sharks, I'm going to focus on the things I do at home that make it a great place to be. The emphasis is on creating a warm nest, instead of a padded cell. 1. Routine Maintaining a routine that is as close to normal as possible really helps to stay connected to time, space and security. There's something instinctively comforting about daily routines. Our pets kno