They say when a ladybug comes to you that it is a sign of good luck, of protection, and that the number of spots indicate the number of months till true love comes. But this ladybug in all its wisdom and simple elegance whispered a private message to me. She told me that to get an enormous project off the ground you need only take small steps because the small steps accumulate. She also told me that to get to where you want to go that you can travel on the backs of others, at any point disembarking to stay in the sun, because “you call the shots” she said. What an interesting message? Nature is so full of wisdom. Well this beautiful orange ladybug is a gentle reminder that beauty is everywhere and to create it you don’t need much, all you need to do is look at things differently.

The shortbreads are cooling, the plum pudding is gently steaming, and the church choir on CD is singing Christmas Carols. “Mmm… says my 14 year old daughter downing a couple of the shortbreads, “it’s a good thing you got the shortbreads made Mums. I mean Chuch and I were concerned that Santa might pass on by without some type of reward,” she giggles. Then she eyes the Sherry bottle, which I had just pulled out and adds, “Perhaps we should leave Santa some Sherry this year? We think he likes that better than Scotch,” she adds with a twinkle. Then from behind the computer my 10-year-old son bellows out: “Santa likes white wine, champagne, and coffee in the morning”. They both laugh waiting for my reaction but I am deep into reading a letter from my Mother written to me at Christmas in 1989 shortly after her mother, and my “Nan” passed away. It is the story of her childhood memories of family Christmas dinner in St Catherine’s, Ontario where she grew up and the history of the Plum Pudding recipe.

“It was the war years..” my mother writes “I can remember our Christmas dinner table being full of uncles and cousins in uniform – Army, Air force, and Navy. While the Aunts were making dinner we would be outside playing Lacrosse. It was a wonderful time but emotions were high. War, as we know is a monster, a tragedy that I pray my children and grandchildren will never experience”.

She then goes on to share my great grandmother’s Plum Pudding recipe, which of course originated in Scotland.

So to all my clients, colleagues, and friends, wherever you are, I wish you a happy holiday season and a joyous celebration of your family traditions.

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” – Norman Vincent Peale

If your intention is to transform your outer and inner life and find realignment to your true path the benefits of spending time in nature can be transformational.

While sitting on these stones in quiet meditation I discovered help in visioning as I learned the importance of harmony and balance in the process. The Earth is a living organism like we are. But while our physical bodies are lighter and more fragile, stones have held their form for centuries. Indigenous peoples have had great respect for the earth and for the wisdom and knowledge associated with stones, whom they call the “Stone People”.

As Earth people we have strayed so far away from our natural roots. The current devastation of our planet and of our lives is a strong wake up call that we all must rediscover within ourselves humanity, trust and that sense of connection to all creation. This is the missing link to our sustainability, for in nature we find communion with the inner and outer and connection to our source. True happiness flows by respecting the beauty of the silence, of trusting time to reveal and heal, and in living in the present with a sense of irrevocable joy.

It is hard not to smile at the trees, a beautiful flower, or to feel communion at a profound level when we walk next to the ocean. Stones too are apart of this ecosystem. They connect our inner and outer lives.

We have for centuries depended on the wisdom of stones to power our technologies.

Beginning is the most important part of the work. That’s when the planning and goal setting is done. At this point for the seed (or idea) to grow requires faith rather than reason.

It also requires an enormous amount of laughter. There is something special about the vibrations associated with laughter.

I have discovered that when you celebrate the first bloom at seed stage that a garden of blooms (success) is inevitable. You might have to bless a few people who say you are crazy arranging a dinner party celebration around a pot of earth, but isn’t crazy the square root of sanity anyway?

Success, like beauty “is in the eye of the beholder”.

Sailing is a lot like business. You need a good boat (product), a strong breeze (opportunity), a strategy to win, and a “sober” captain and crew. Here are some sailing photos from EO Houston University taken with my EO (Entrepreneurs Organization) colleagues while sailing on Galveston Bay, Texas. There was an interesting strategy going on!