Infusing Western Style with Eastern Traditions: A Busy Woman’s Guide to Feng Shui for Chinese New Year (Part 1)

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

How’s your New Year going? Have you accomplished the goals you set or stuck to your resolutions? If not, you have another opportunity to make headway by preparing for the upcoming Chinese New Year.

As the Lunar New Year approaches, there is a profound opportunity to seamlessly weave together the tapestry of cultural richness and modern elegance within the sanctuaries of our homes. This transformative series, carefully curated by me, a Feng Shui master, is designed specifically for the dynamic and busy professional women of today.

Together, let’s embark on a journey that skillfully merges Western interior design ideas with timeless Asian customs, introducing not only a sense of calm and beauty but also infusing a touch of the sacred into every corner of your home.

What makes this guide particularly appealing is that each tip is meticulously crafted to be effortlessly incorporated into your routine – whether you do a little each day or take a half day here and there to implement them – each suggestion can be allocated to an hour or less, depending on how much time you have, how much needs to be done, or how much focus into the details you want to spend time wise.

Marie Kondo's Book: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Marie Kondo’s Book: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Step 1: Declutter Your Space with a Purposeful Twist (30 minutes – maybe a couple times a week if you have several areas of focus)

Our journey commences with a deep dive into the transformative power of mindful decluttering, drawing inspiration from the minimalist philosophy of the renowned Marie Kondo. Beyond the mere act of tidying, this process is an intentional and purposeful endeavor.

As you delicately sift through your possessions, envision not only the reclamation of physical space but also the dispelling of any lingering negative energy. By consciously parting ways with items that no longer serve you, you are engaging in more than a decluttering exercise; you are creating room for the infusion of positive vibes.

This intentional approach serves as the foundational step toward crafting a serene and sacred home where each corner resonates with the vibrant energy of joy and purpose. Imagine a space that not only looks tidy but feels revitalized – a perfect initiation into the auspicious Chinese New Year.

#DeclutterForCalm #SacredSpaceRevival

Next Stop: Create a Westernized Wealth Corner

Self-Care During Seasons of Scary Times – When It’s Your Health – Part 3 (Continued) What I did

Here’s what I did

 

The Artist's Way - The book that started my journaling journey!

The Artist’s Way – The book that started my journaling journey!

  1. I started to read empowering books and magazines. (This was long before any electronic readers were available. Coaches, especially Mindset Coaches, were very rare and not in my immediate SOI – Sphere of Influence.
  2. I came across Julia Cameron’s book, The Artists Way. It talked about journaling and doing “Morning Pages.” This worked for me. I started to be more optimistic. I was “dumping” the negative thoughts and worries onto a hand-written page. After about a week of this I couldn’t handle the negative writing and started writing about how I wanted to be well, walk again, and be able to do all the activities I loved.
  3. I had learned about Feng Shui about 10 years before. In Feng Shui we learned about the interconnectedness of the home and the body. Since the diagnosis was unknown, all I could do was look at what had been visible – in and on my body – and what my symptoms were.
    • The rash was on the skin and the skin is the outside of the house. I knew the paint on my house was peeling in places. I had someone come and fix it.

      Area where the sheetrock was torn because the doorframe had been removed to move the washer & dryer out of the laundry room.

      Area where the sheetrock was torn because the doorframe had been removed to move the washer & dryer out of the laundry room.

    • My knees wouldn’t bend. Those are the “joints.” I had someone fix the joints where the sheetrock seams were located, which had been broken when the previous owner tore out the door in order to remove the washer and dryer from the laundry room. (The reason those joints had not been fixed before I bought the house was because I had bought the home “as is” out of desperation during the divorce.)
    • I continued the process by changing my thoughts from “symptoms” and “poor me” to my desired outcomes! I saw myself wearing beautiful shoes again and having the ability to dress up, go out of the house, and enjoy the beauty of life. I wanted to see the sunlight from outside, to wear bright colors, and dance. Then in my mind’s eye I saw a stained-glass window with all the colors of the rainbow. I saw where it had to go in the house.

      Before photo of living room when we started the remodeling. - Living room sheet rock removal 4-27-05

      Before photo of living room when we started the remodeling. – Living room sheet rock removal 4-27-05

    • From that point on my mind was on a creative journey. I wrote daily about visions I saw for the house. The visions looked at every part of the home, finding what was wrong or broken or didn’t work for me. These visions included ways to change it, making it beautiful.

Years before I was guided to name my company, A Beautiful Center of Light. During this time the real birthing of my company into a material form occurred. This process showed all the things I needed to change in my home and what to do.

I didn’t know how I was going to pay for any of the work. I didn’t know how this was going to heal my body.

But… the process healed my body! And the money came to do the work on the house.

The multi-colored stained-glass window placed in the living room where I saw it in my Mind's Eye years before!

The multi-colored stained-glass window placed in the living room where I saw it in my Mind’s Eye years before!

They still don’t know what I had or what caused my illness. It really doesn’t matter now. What does matter is I learned how our home is an extension of us. We are connected to it and it to us.

I continued to journal for many years and then stopped. When I went back to reading my journals, I decided I wasn’t going to do any more writing like that. It was so negative and depressing. I tossed the journals because I never wanted anyone to see how far down the dark hole I had gone. They contained an energy I needed to release from my body at that time, not keep to remember or share.

Multi-colored Stained glass window

Closeup – Multi-colored Stained glass window

Journaling has helped many people and may be exactly what you need and want to do. It definitely did help me. But the journals themselves were not something I wanted to keep in my space once I was healed.

If you’d like to learn more about the connection between our body and our home, I’ve written an eBook on this called, HOME: A Reflection of SELF! Check my website for a free copy of it or contact me to receive it.

I think you will find the information fascinating and helpful!