Leanne Margaret

Mornings aren't my best time. Many of my journal entries reflect this. So this week I introduced a new way to finish my more challenged entries on a brighter note. You may have heard of the Gratitude List. It's a personal growth practice where a list is written of The I Like List anything to be grateful for. The activity helps to invoke a positive outlook. Energetically, it charges up the solar plexus (sun) energy centre, raising power, confidence and creative potential. There are occasions where my mind is not receptive to the word gratitude. The I Like List is simply a softer version of the Gratitude List. It is based on the same principles and has the same effect as a gratitude list. Both practices shine the light of our consciousness onto the aspects of our world that we feel positive about. The first thing on two of my lists was, 'I like coffee.' It doesn't matter where you start, as long as you keep it positive. Lots of people in the media seem to b

Writing stalled last week, but that doesn't mean I'm not creating. As a writer I'm a bit like mushrooms: Under the correct conditions I will fruit all at once, but mostly I'm working away underground and out of sight. For me, creative energy is cyclical, sometimes introverted and sometimes extroverted. So even if I'm not working actively on my projects every day, I'm still thinking about them. The word has to be thought before it is written. Although the editing of my second book is excruciatingly slow at the moment, I have been journaling daily - sometimes several times daily. My writing hand and my writing voice are still being exercised in private. When a fork appears in the road it can be necessary to stop and review. I had been preparing to commence writing a new non-fiction book, but there's a novel in my head that won't leave me alone. I have a short draft, but it needs proper planning and rewriting. This is a different style of writi

A break from blogging wasn't part of the plan for April. Screen burnout is a thing and I had it. I may still have it. But there are a few exciting things I need to talk about this week. This term of Majickal Bellydance includes choreography. I have enjoyed writing a new spiritual dance to share with the class. I have also revised an old favourite, one that makes me smile. I hope it makes the dancers of Seville smile too. I'm really pleased that class begins again this Thursday 19th April. Writers' group begins again at Seville Community House this Wednesday 18th April. This group is run by crime-fiction author Debra Marks. Debra will also be joining me at Seville Community House for an author talk on Sunday 29th April.  Together, we will be sharing our experience with self-publishing and starting a writing business. Bring along your questions and fears about self-publishing. We don't know everything, but we are well on our way and love to talk with interested w

There are various ways to experience Easter. For some it's a holiday and time with friends and family. For some it's a deeply meaningful time for spiritual ceremony. But for everyone, this time of year is a seasonal festival. All over the world people are experiencing the change of the seasons. The in-between seasons, either from summer to winter, or from winter to summer (or their equatorial equivalent). My sauce & some random tomatoes Parallel with the traditions people follow, we are all subject to the changing moods of the seasons. Aside from winter sport enthusiasts, many people instinctively withdraw their energy in winter, I know I do. Like a bear in a cave, it's hard to get me out of the house during the colder months. Whether or not we are conscious of it, we are all affected by the relinquishing of autumn and the growth cycle of spring. Inexorably, nature flows through us, connecting us to people and planet. Our own personal energies expand and contra

Hi All 😀 As we make our descent toward the colder seasons I'm aware that part of me is looking forward to more time indoors being creative. I usually dread the cold of winter, but this year life is looking brighter. Creatively, there's a lot to do and it's getting easier to do it.  I'm better able to leave the past behind me and get on with my days. During the summer just gone I even managed to balance a term of dance classes with my writing life. Bellydance Classes Thursday night dance class has been a personal tradition since my early dance class days. It's a life affirming practice that helps to undo the hours spent sitting at computer and notebook. Majickal Bellydance is more than exercise, it's like a moving meditation. The benefits are spiritual as well as physical and mental. I'll be teaching a new term of classes at Seville Community house from April 19. Details HERE . On the topic of life balance: Due to anxiety and PTSD, I have had to

This isn't the usual love spell. Like many majickal people, I have experienced the enduring ties that can be created when we perform unethical spells. That is - spells involving another person. You might be thinking, "what? No spells involving others? How can a love spell happen without others?" Consent It's all about consent. It's not appropriate to join with another person without their consent, even on spiritual planes. There has to be another way to do our love majick. The Source of Love Love majick begins with you, the source of love in your life. Personal love majick seeks to expand the love within you. In this way you can build your reserves of love and life-affirming energy; the kind of energy that is attractive to others. If you love you, someone else surely can. Feeling the Love Feeling the love means generating feelings of love from within. It means not only finding what you love about yourself, but also your life and the people, places a

While writing this post I realised that every journal completed is a hand written book - old style. Suddenly my journalling feels more precious. There are loads of reasons to keep a journal. Here are a few of them. 1. Expression: The human desire toward self expression has led to constant evolution in media. The platforms available on which we can say our bit are endless. But I think journalling is still a valuable tool for self-expression. For some of us, journaling is still the best way to access deeper levels of consciousness. Technology can be a stimulating and distracting influence. The gently tactile pages of a journal can offer a private place to write raw. It's where our thoughts can evolve and become more clear, without an audience. 2. Articulation:  Self expression becomes easier when we have practised putting words to our thoughts, feelings and inspirations in a journal. Our emotional intelligence increases as we learn to express our inner life accurately to other