Ocean of Gratitude Cruise 2009

March 14-22 the 3rd Ocean of Gratitude adventure:

March 22nd I returned to Montana from my 3rd Gratitude cruise experience reflecting on the ways each cruise was unique and special yet I've come to realize on this flight home they share what I feel are 5 Gratitude traits:

1. Gratitude people focus on solutions rather than the problem. Instead of worrying about "stuff" and let's face it we all experience our share of "stuff" on the path; Gratitude people focus their energy on the good in everyone and everything in Life's situations.

2. Gratitude people are empowered by Love. Yes, Love rules! We accept that we each have a story, share similar experiences; pain, heartache, and fears est.; the difference being in Gratitude makes is being open to life. Our living from the heart tends to connect us each to the natural rhythm and flow of life; trusting in the larger wholeness of universal law.

3. Gratitude people make it a point to seek a healthy support system by attracting and surrounding themselves with positive, uplifting people.

4. Gratitude people make a conscious choice daily to live their passion with joy and gusto. They incorporate an attitude of gratitude into everything they do.

5. Gratitude people nourish their well-being by taking the necessary steps to achieve and maintain a healthy Mind, Body & Soul; with daily exercise, drinking good water, making wise food choices, getting needed rest, and last but not least embracing an attitude of Love & Gratitude!
So there you have it in a "Nut Shell." This is what you get when you put a room full of Ocean of Gratitude people together! All this entwined with quite a few AHA moments, lots of song and laughter with oodles of JOY makes for an awesome 8-day adventure at sea. A highlight for me the Soul Art Collage workshops I facilitated where each participant created their Life visual aid that helps them focus positive intentions in all areas of being to manifest their dreams and goals.
Visit, explore, and enjoy www.evelinemariasmith.com a new work in progress and newly updated www.soulartgallery.com

Book Review

Title: A Christmas To Remember
Author: Eveline Maria Smith
Publisher: Lulu.com

"A Christmas To Remember" is a book that fills your heart. It isn't so much a book around the Christmas Season, as it is about a wonderful gift given to a family that the town had never met.

When I began reading the book, I wasn't sure just what it was going to be. Very quickly, I was drawn into this small town, its inhabitants and the struggling family alone and discouraged in a large city. Eveline does a great job of laying the groundwork for this transformation and hope that is given by the whole town.
With the world in a time of struggle, hardship, and some hopelessness, it does us all good to be drawn into this story. It shows what America still is. A country that can care, can bounce back, and move on.

Thanks you Eveline for writing this wonderful story. I will look forward to more of your writing. Sharon Emmett - Napa, CA
Hardcover http://www.lulu.com/content/2995604
Paperback http://www.lulu.com/content/3190395

Ocean of Gratitude Cruise 2008

Ocean of Gratitude Cruise 2008 was filled with many wonderful AHA moments! Wayne and I enjoyed every moment embracing all aspects of life. Dr. Emoto's influence and presence was felt throughout the eight day Western Caribbean journey as every presenter, their presentation with each participant resonated good Hado vibrations of love and gratitude.

Time with Michael and Rickie Beckwith was beyond awesome! From Michael's Spiritual insights to Rickie's Soul songs the experiences were transformational, inspirational, unconditional love, joy and light. And I feel infinite love and gratitude for having had time to visit with Michael and share from my heart about synchronicity, spiritual awakening, Soul Art Collage and Family ∞ Love poster's image and healing message of interconnectedness to enable a community for healing ourselves, our environment and our Earth.

"Consciousness empowers us to experience the oneness in everything and everyone." - Dr. Darren Weissman
Darren Weissman's presentations were filled with many of those AHA moments. As one of Dr. Emoto's Hado Instructors I naturally wanted to experience Darren's "LifeLine Technique." My session took place on the upper deck of Liberty Carnival ship in the energy and light of the full moon the experience was both self-empowering and memorable. A "WOW" AHA moment! Now often throughout my day in thought I chant, "Infinite love and gratitude, infinite love and gratitude, infinite love and gratitude."

In Cozumel Wayne and I enjoyed the opportunity to walk uneven ground that meandered among the towering Mayan ruins of Tulum, "The City of Dawn" erected on the cliffs that overlook the beautiful transparent waters of the Caribbean Sea.

In Limon, Costa Rica we experienced taste of the tropics on the river highway leading to Nicaragua; observing Howler monkeys, Sloth, cranes and more in their natural habitat. Prior to climbing on board the 100-year-old train in route to the banana plantation we enjoyed a snack on locally grown coconut, pineapple and banana. As the train pulled to a stop little children greeted us offering up hibiscus and orchid blossoms with hope of some small token in gratitude. This reminded me of a early childhood experience in post war Germany at about age 5, I would run with the older children to greet the US Army caravans. The soldiers tossed chocolate bars and chewing gum rations as they drove by. Some cheered as we ran alongside with hope of catching some small token in gratitude.

We traveled by bus to Panama City with Christine Stevens to drum with the local Panama people and musicians. Drumming under the bridge of America was a very powerful experience! A beautiful reminder of our interconnectedness with each other and with everything. Afterwards, we enjoyed a homemade lunch of some local area traditional foods. This by far was Wayne's and my favorite meal! We wondered if those preparing this awesome meal had listened to Shawn Galloway's song, "I Choose Love" as we could taste the camaraderie, love and friendship that went into its preparation with every bite.

The highlight for me was the opportunity to present my Soul Art Collage Workshop! I send oceans of infinite love and gratitude to Karol Avalon. Ocean of Gratitude provides infinite possibilities to discover, share and shine in body, mind and spirit with the attitude of gratitude. Both the Tapestry and Persian rooms provided an awesome environment to present my Soul Art Collage Workshop! Participants let me know they enjoyed their Soul Art Collage experience! "It was a fun, relaxing way to create with intention and incorporate all the wonderful knowledge gained throughout the week; and provides a lovely keepsake to bring home. A reminder to focus positive in every area of life living infinite love and gratitude."

Combined Wayne and I must have taken a couple hundred photographs. Jane Young creates these lovely little movies to highlight our travel experiences and the Soul Art Collage workshop presentations and have them available for viewing in YouTube and my Soul Moments BlogSpot.

"Powerful and timely! A beautiful synthesis of ancient insight and modern science Dr. Weissman gives our mind a reason to accept what our heart already knows that love is the great healer of life, and the power to love into wellness lives within each of us."- Gregg Braden
With Infinite Love and Gratitude Eveline Maria Smith

Soul Art Collage Workshop Ocean of Gratitude Cruise 2008

“We can never obtain peace in the World if we neglect our Inner World and don’t make peace with ourselves.” ~Dalai Lama

Jane Young has created this lovely movie combining both Soul Art Collage Workshops I presented on the February 22nd and 23rd, 2008’s Ocean of Gratitude Cruise. Participants including the men in each workshop expressed enthusiastically, “Soul Art Collage is fun, relaxing and greatly appreciated the ways creating their Soul Art Collage brought everything they had experienced and learned throughout the week together into a "take home" piece of art as a daily reminder!” A reminder to focus positive with infinite love and gratitude…..Our doing so strengthens Good Hado vibrations in us and our environment.

The Soul Art, Journal, and Collage Workshops I facilitate are positive and a wonderful unique reflection of the many ways synchronicity unfolds in harmonious flow with Hado Vibrations.

◊ Soul Art offers participants an opportunity to journey within to connect with the real You. We begin our creative journey with a meditation that incorporates the Chakra colors as we connect to the uniquely creative child within all of us. Then while listening to beautiful inspiring music whether one has artistic talent or is a novice they will discover the joy of freely expressing their soul's artist with medium of choice; watercolor, pastels, pencil, charcoal.

◊ Soul Art Journal Collage provides participants an opportunity to observe and to ponder and to visualize, and to remember. Combining journaling and collage is a mixture of intuition, imagination and creativity that reflects one's inner self and nourishes the soul. It is a process in creation that becomes a visual journal that speaks from the soul of the many-faceted self as your unique story unfolds...

What I love about collage is that everyone feels comfortable, it is individual and there simply is no right or wrong way to collage.

◊ Soul Art Collage celebrates participating in life with the attitude of infinite love and gratitude encompassing the flow of Good Hado vibrations. I reference Dr. Masaru Emoto’s healing work with water and how understanding our link to water, the interconnection between ourselves and our environment empowers us to be the change we want to experience. Participants create an effective, focused visual aid that embraces positive intentions in all areas of life that they are able to connect with daily enables them to manifest goals, dreams, and aspirations.

Susan Esserwein’s Colors of Light and Clouds in the Looking Glass can be purchased via http://cdbaby.com/all/susanesserwein

◊ I am delighted to share that my article ‘Synchronicity Flows in Harmony with Hado Vibration’ was recently published in the 3rd issue of Dr. Emoto’s E-Hado magazine/newsletter. E-Hado is interactive and provides subscribers an opportunity to submit their articles, suggestions for water crystal experiments, and Hado questions for Dr. Emoto. To subscribe go to http://www.hado.net/

Visit to Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine

As I make mention in previous posts I have made some wonderful synchronistic heart connections through the online networking I do in shining my light for God. I first met Kevin Reid via the online Peace Portal Ning network. We share a similar passion. Gandhi-“Be the change you wish to see in the world."

After February 11th Resource Fair in Los Angeles Wayne and I had several days to visit our daughter Heather and Kevin invited us to join him at the beautiful ten-acre Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) Lake Shrine in Pacific Palisades, California. It was a beautiful afternoon and when sorting through the photographs I felt guided to have Jane Young http://www.joy-tothe-world.com/ create a lovely movie to honor this ideal setting and sacred place for quiet reflection and meditation created by Paramahansa Yogananda (1893 –1952) http://www.yogananda-srf.org/

It was a most delightful afternoon walking the shoreline path of the natural, spring-fed lake discovering its Gandhi World Peace Memorial containing a portion of Mahatma’s ashes and the picturesque chapel housed in an authentic reproduction of a 16th-century Dutch windmill where we took time to sit in silent reflection with infinite love and gratitude. In 1950 at the dedication of Gandhi’s World Peace Memorial Sri Yogananda said: “We must recognize the unity of mankind, remembering that we are all made in the image of God. There must be world brotherhood if we are to be able to practice the true art of living. This shrine has been created for all religions, that all may feel the unity of a common faith.”

Kevin Reid’s passion is to inspire more unity, love and joy in the world. He journeyed for nearly two years with his brother Jimmy to produce a song he wrote called “WE ARE ONE—A World Anthem.” The production evolved to include over 200 people from more than 30 countries; a diverse range of professional artists and wide array of everyday people. You can hear the anthem, read the story behind its creation and view pictures of all people involved at http://www.aworldanthem.org/index.html On November 11, 2007 Kevin launched initiative to establish a internationally recognized “World Unity Day” by releasing a open letter to the world with the following excerpt:

“I envision a day set aside by humanity to further the cause of world unity.

· A day embraced by individuals, communities and nations throughout the world.

· A day to celebrate and rejoice in the rich cultural diversity of the human family.

· A day to help establish a foundation upon which future generations can build a world where differences are honored with respect and love.

· A day where we stand side-by-side, hand-in-hand and proclaim that we are one global family!”

To sign the “Declaration of World Unity” petition, http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/establish-international-world-unity-day.html Kevin is seeking 1,000,000 signatures to represent all American states and all 192 nations. As soon as this is achieved, he will address the U.N to establish a “World Unity Day.”

Blessings of all things good always in all ways with infinite love, respect, gratitude, and peace, Eveline Maria

L.A. Visit, Ripples of Gratitude Resource Fair & Soul Art Collage Workshop

I feel such profound love, appreciation and gratitude for everyone, for everything, for all that is my life! It is with infinite love and gratitude I express appreciation for Karen and Sherri’s encouragement and support of my Spiritual Art, Soul Art, Journal, and Collage Workshops and for shining their light in support of “Awakened Heart” and “Family ∞ Love, Together we make a difference.” We are all connected and to understand our link to water enables us to embrace life with the attitude of infinite love and gratitude. It is with great JOY I accepted the invitation to present my Soul Art Collage Workshop at the 7th Annual Best Practices “Ripples of Gratitude” Resource Fair.

Both Sherri Jaye and Jane Young connected with me via the World Wide Gratitude forum in 2006!!! What drew me to WWG was the desire to connect with others who choose to be positive in gratitude and live from the heart. WWG provided a space to cultivate habits of love, appreciation and gratitude shining light on our life experiences blessed us with wonderful opportunities to co-create, for individual inspiration and growth.

It was through my sharing of my life, my spiritual journey, art and my being one of Dr. Emoto’s Hado Instructors that Sherri connected with my “Awakened Heart” painting. Sherri felt its vibration resonated with the 2007 Resource Fair’s theme “Healing the Heart.” Karen and Sherri honored me and my vision of healing and peace by displaying the “Awakened Heart” framed prints and the “Awakened Heart” cards throughout the Resource Fair.

My presenting the Soul art Collage workshop at the 7th Annual Best Practices “Ripples of Gratitude” Resource Fair in Los Angeles February 11, 2008 also gifted me an opportunity to enjoy several days with my daughter, Heather. In this wonderful movie Jane Young entwines both beautifully. I felt guided to share Jane’s monthly inspirational movies with Sherri Jaye and imagine my delight in experiencing Jane’s breathtaking visual meditation inspired by Dr. Emoto’s work with “Messages from the Water” and “Love Thyself” play continuous throughout the morning!

In the 7th Annual Best Practices in Counseling Resource Fair’s theme, “Ripples of Gratitude,” Karen L. Timko, Coordinator of Primary Intervention Counseling Services and Elementary School Programs shares from the heart! “Ripples of Gratitude, has given me the opportunity to explore the role that gratitude plays in our work and our lives. The word gratitude is derived from the Latin root gratia meaning “grace,” “graciousness,” or “gratefulness” and is generally understood to be an appreciation that one has benefited from the efforts of another. Relatively new studies are revealing that there are practical applications that can yield very positive results for us and for the students and families we work with. According to the research project on gratitude and thankfulness conducted by Emmons and McCullough, simply keeping a gratitude journal led people to report that they exercised more, regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week. Participants who kept gratitude lists were more likely to have made progress toward academic, interpersonal, and health-based goals. In another 21-day intervention, participants reported great levels of high energy, positive words, a greater sense of feeling connected to others and more optimistic rating of one’s life. There is also growing evidence that gratitude and related states may positively impact cardiovascular and immune responses as well.”

Sherri Jaye, MS, LMFT PIC/PSA Counselor and Resource Fair Chairperson shares from the heart! “While I was thinking about this, the theme “Ripples of Gratitude,” came to me. I believe that if I can share my happiness, my experiences, my deep and sincere feelings of gratitude with others, that they will feel my joy, peacefulness, gratitude and then feel better themselves, and thus spread this ripple effect to others.” Dr. Emoto says, “It’s only when you like who you are, feel grateful for your existence, and respect yourself that you’re able to have the same feelings toward other people. The nature of vibrations is such that negative resonates only with negative and positive resonates only with positive. No matter how much you say and think good things, you can’t give off good vibrations as long as you have a distorted image of your substance. When we shine and keep sending out positive vibrations, they reach the people and the water around us, and eventually they spread like ripples all over the world.”

Blessings of all things good always in all ways with infinite love and gratitude, Eveline Smith

Children's Soul Art Collage Workshops

“Sacred begins at the tip of your tongue. Be careful when speaking. You create the world around you with your words.” ~ (Navajo Elder Traditionalist; Two - Spirit People

“Miracle of Water Enters My Life” by Kathleen Little Leaf

My name is Kathleen Little Leaf, I am Native American from a Canadian Tribe part of the Pikuni Nation or the Blackfoot Nation. Blackfoot Nation consists of four clans of Blackfoot, the Blood Tribe (Standoff Alberta), Siksika Tribe (Cluny Alberta), Peigan Tribe (Brocket Alberta), and Blackfeet Tribe (Browning Montana), from the United States. And I was very happy to take part in Maria’s Soul Art.

My children; Jessica, Tabetha, Levi, Brendon, Imari and Sterling also participated where she volunteered and came to my home to share Soul Art teachings and Dr. Masaru Emoto’s Miracle of Water with my children as well as my friend, Renee LaPlant and her son Jhett.

The Miracle of Water by Dr. Masaru Emoto entered my life at a time where I needed rejuvenation of mind, heart, and body. My life’s journey has led me to the places where I need to be and I am grateful to be led with teachings of the power of water.

In Dr. Emoto’s research he has found how words affect water and the healing words of gratitude and love. I was taken quickly to Dr. Emoto’s work with water and crystals since I could relate his teachings to my cultural teachings especially through a book which I use daily for healing with my clients and self: The Red Road to Wellbriety In the Native American Way, White Bison Inc. This book addresses getting sober from substances through circle teachings in Native American culture. The White Bison teachings teach how it is possible to have a good mind, and good heart through change of thought, feeling, vision and the power of words. http://www.whitebison.org/home.html

The Native American Cultural teachings and The Miracle of Water interconnect, as they both show us the importance of understanding Nature and learning from Nature and understanding the Universe. It is important to implement good thought, feeling, vision and words in daily living and understand things come to us in a reciprocal through the Law of the Universe in the White Bison Teachings and power of words in the Miracle of Water. The negative or positive message one sends out is reciprocated back to its original messenger this is why it is important to understand the power of thought, words, feeling, and vision. And, that change is possible, healing can happen through individual, family, community, and nation. It is with understanding of both teachings; the Miracle of Water and the White Bison Circle that healing is possible creating a ripple effect to the rest of our world and it begins through us as individuals, who then can lead to good and prosperity for us all, Nature and Mother Earth.

Soul Art Collage Workshops

The Feng Shui Center & White Tiger Gifts located at 115 West Main downtown Missoula, MT provides a lovely energy and space to facilitate small gatherings and workshops. Late autumn 2007 I visited with Johna Koontz in her lovely shop about Dr. Emoto’s works with messages from water, Hado, my being a Hado Instructor and the Soul Art Workshops I facilitate my sharing inspired Johna to offer me her space to hold workshops.

I am a firm believer those I’m intended to share from the heart my work and connect with will come to the workshops I facilitate. The workshops held on December 1, 2007 and January 19, 2008 connected me with four wonderfully amazing inspirational women who live from the heart. Kathy Little Leaf, Renee LaPlant, Hannah Rimensberger and Maribeth Rothwell are featured with their Soul Art Collages in this movie created with Joy by Jane Young http://www.joy-tothe-world.com/

For several years now I have felt drawn to incorporate Sue Esserwein’s albums in the workshops I facilitate and in this movie “The Space Of No Judgement” resonates with the energy and experience of the workshops featured. It is a lovely relaxing selection from “The Clouds In The Looking Glass” http://cdbaby.com/all/susanesserwein

Wishes of all things good always in all ways with blessings of love, gratitude, respect, and peace!!!!!

Eveline Maria Smith http://www.soulartgallery.com/