You may remember my Summer Solstice Gratitude Giveaway from 2018, almost exactly a year ago. It was the second giveaway I hosted and was extremely well-received, as well as had far-reaching effects and benefits to all who joined. I still hear from people who have continued implementing their practice and how it supports the shifts and challenging times they go through, while helping them to expand and live more abundantly.

Well, I’ve been strongly nudged to offer this again, but with a little twist.

I’ve been feeling into the collective energy and listening to what people have been sharing, as they navigate current big changes once again cycling through.

In the midst of challenges and trying to figure things out, it’s easy to forget your practice and rituals of gratitude, but especially of self-care and creating space for you.

So this time the challenge, if you so choose to accept it, will combine a gratitude practice with self-nurturing and love.

This is only an invitation, so if you don’t like the guidelines or resonate with following the structure of it, you simply can choose not to participate or use it as inspiration to create your own practice, add to one you already have, or simply use it as a reminder of mindfulness.

If you do feel a draw to participate and feel like accountability would be helpful, then I welcome you to join.

Here are the guidelines for the Giveaway that will result in implementing changes relative to your life, experiencing more of what you want in your life, and may even see you receiving a gift from me.

New Moon Gratitude Giveaway:

1. Accountability: Please let me know by this Friday, May 31st that you have decided to commit to this challenge. You can either let me know in the comments of this blog post, or CONTACT ME ***** If you find this through my posting it on Facebook or Instagram, please STILL ONLY CONTACT ME ABOUT JOINING VIA THESE 2 OPTIONS. It helps me out a lot to have everything in one place. I know people tend to miss details due to a lot of info to take in, but hoping this helps.

2. Gratitude in Action: Starting June 3rd and for the next 8 full days until the end of June 10th please begin a daily practice of gratitude – even if you already are – in which case go further. This is where the twist comes in: Rather than creating a list of at least 10 things you are grateful for and why about just ANYTHING (which in many cases will result in being grateful for things “OUT THERE”), I am going to ask that you look for things to be grateful for that are about yourself ONLY. (things “IN HERE”) – (Please read through the end of this blog to see why this is important and for examples). At the end on June 11th, you’ll send me this list just like you did last time. You can either type them up or take a photo of your journal pages and send that to me. I know this can be vulnerable, so I understand people not wanting to participate, however that is also a hugely empowering part of this and of course anything you share with me stays between us. I’m a Reiki Master Teacher and have also coached with clients so I honor that relationship. This will give you at least 80 things and reasons you are grateful for something about yourself. The more heart connection you can create with this, the more you increase the frequency of this experience, depth of healing, and expansive magnetism it creates.

3. Giving in Action: This is an important one! For each of these 8 days I’d like you to do at least one thing in the way of giving and/or nurturing to yourself that you wouldn’t normally do. Please make note of that in your journal next to your list of things you’re grateful for and why about yourself.

4. Responsibility: Send me your Gratitude and Giving lists by the end of the day on Tuesday June 11th. I would also love to hear how this experience was for you and anything you noticed shifting in your life during and/or after the 8 days.

5. Integrity: All of this truly is between you and yourself on whether or not you actually do these things and how much you invest of yourself in them. And with that said, it would be wonderful if you can make a promise to yourself to continue this forward long after June 10th. See this New Moon energy as the portal to make a huge life shift – even if it is simply in fine-tuning what you already do. For some, this may be a new experience. Either way, I assure you that you will experience positive and enriching shifts in your life during this time period and as a result. And if you maintain this as your daily walking meditation you will experience things exponentially, but most importantly your quality of life will be enhanced, as will everyone and every experience you come in contact with. There are so many ways you can fine-tune this process and challenge yourself to rise to greater levels with it by going farther with it all and in every circumstance. You will learn creative ways that gratitude now is simply aligning you with probable realities your frequency is matching. The choosing of the realities is up to you, but they await you realizing them.

Of course adding this to a gratitude practice, in general, about ALL of the things you are grateful for would be truly powerful too, but I tend to see how self love and nurturing continues to be neglected and so this is why I’m focusing this particular challenge on YOU. 

I think it can be easier to find things about others or things around us to be grateful for, but is harder for us to look at ourselves with the same loving eyes of appreciation and love.

So, why am I focusing this on you?

Since we know the power of “what you embody within will reflect without” this alone is reason.

We also are well aware of the thought that you can’t give what you don’t already have yourself – or at least perhaps not as fully.

We’ve also heard, “if you can’t love yourself, how can you love someone else?”

And, if you’re always giving out, but never open to receiving, then you aren’t fully exercising truly living in abundance. When we give to and receive from ourselves as well, this gets an extra boost.

We get messaged in every which way about how mission and service is of utmost importance. That you need to think in this vein, “how can I be of service?” And while I agree that taking into account the highest good for all concerned is key, the word “all” remember is inclusive of you, too!

We tend to bypass ourselves because we’ve been told that is selfish. We’ve also been told about the ego and to have any of that would also be a taboo. But the “you” I’m talking about is not about some ego-trip, nor is about not caring about anyone else.

It’s seeing everything and everyone connected.

What it’s not about is being a martyr and self-sacrificing.

What is about is authenticity, showing up, living out loud, expressing your unique self and fullness, and being the best version of you within the collective tapestry. And in order to do that, there’s a level of self nurturing, love, and care that is needed. There’s a level of appreciation for the beautiful gifts you have, for your life, for the ability to shine your individual light. There’s a need for you to have space, time, and value.

Because when you are doing these things, it automatically translates as the highest good for all concerned.

When you disregard yourself, push yourself aside, diminish your light, relinquish your right to express yourself, feel bad about or hide your gifts, and believe you aren’t worthy of things, then others feel that too.

Others receive your example, as permission to do the same – what ever that is. And they act accordingly, which may look something like a lot of people yearning for self love and finding ways to fulfill that hopelessly and endlessly, or even defend or lash out about that missing piece hopelessly and endlessly.

Gratitude is a powerful thing – you can read the link from my last post, above, about this. And having gratitude for, and appreciating your uniqueness, accomplishments, and value can take things a step further.

It’s like the layers of an onion we always talk about peeling away.

We can take things deeper and the core of you is a powerful place to focus, alongside the rest of the wonderful work, practices, and gratitude that you make time for.

Here are some examples of things you might find about yourself to share with yourself:

I think this might be a tricky challenge because you might find it easier to say something like, “I’m grateful for the job that I have.”

Now, while that is a wonderful thing to have gratitude for and truly does shift things by expressing and feeling that, it still isn’t personal enough for this challenge.

Your job is something outside of you, or an extension of you.

So how can you make it more personal?

What is it about you that made you the perfect candidate for the job? What qualities do you have that make you exceptional at your job?

So, for instance, “I am grateful for my ability to understand and listen to people and for my sensitivities that enable me to be good at knowing our customers’ needs, find common threads, and be a good team builder.”

These would be more in line with self-love and nurturing. Seeing how something unique about you is a gift. And on top of it, you can see how that gift you have is “serving the higher good.”

It could even shift what you have felt about that gift. For instance, you may have been down on yourself for being an empath or being so sensitive, but in fact those gifts you think are curses, are quite a blessing.

So reach in to find and have gratitude for that gift. Not focusing on the limitations, but the possibilities it provides.

Another example could be, “I am grateful for the way I can find humor in everything, for my silliness and playfulness, and the ability to always see through the eyes of my inner child. I am grateful to be a child at heart because it creates a feeling of wonder for everything around me, helps me to appreciate the little things, and helps lighten situations, as well as gives others permission to have fun too.”

So, rather than say something like, “I am grateful for the children of the world that make me smile,” can you see how the above makes it personal, but still extends out into the world as service, once again.

This all also creates greater self awareness while also nurturing an appreciation for who you are – as you are a beloved child of the universe. 

It helps to create presence, supports you to slow down and create time and space for yourself, and helps to anchor in the new with greater empowerment to move forward with.

You’ll likely discover some resistance, icky feelings, blocks, and other feelings dredged up. I encourage you to go with the flow and try not to judge what comes up. Be gentle with yourself. Your inner child will thank you for this.

Again, we’re not in any way negating or stopping the practice of gratitude in general for anything, but we are taking it deeper and extending it to the inner landscape, as a means to create a ripple on the outer one – inside out.

Love as service.

Self-nurturing as mission.

These effect the whole.

They ARE the whole.

Imagine what a world of self-nurtured individuals might be like. Souls that have learned appreciation and value for their uniqueness now interacting in the world and able to really see and appreciate one another’s individuality and value. What possibilities might that create?

I hope this makes sense.

That brings us to the Giveaway part.

At the end, after I receive everyone’s submissions on the 11th, I’ll then be randomly choosing FOUR people to receive a free gift.

If only four or less people join, you’ll all receive a gift.

If more than four people join, then I will do a random, blind drawing of names, likely helped out by Astrid, to pick four recipients.

So, again if you decide this would be of benefit to you to join, regardless of the gifts involved or not, then you can either comment to this blog or use the Contact page to let me know that you are participating.

The four people will be receiving one of our mini magick rabbit faery gardens or magick rabbit baskets as your gift.

These are enchanted little themed worlds that carry an energy, reminder, theme, and inspiration for life.

They are truly mini portals of possibility.

I am going to be taking part in this myself, alongside anyone who wants to join, but of course I’m not part of the names to be drawn.

The Gratitude Giveaway will start this Monday, June 3rd on the New Moon and will go through the end of Monday, June 10th – that’s 8 full days this time.

New Moons are excellent times to begin anew – create new intentions, renew commitments, take action toward goals, and are great for self-awareness to align with your hopes and dreams for the future.

That energy feels perfect for this.

If you choose to participate, please make sure to read the guidelines and follow them exactly as written and don’t forget to let me know by end of this Friday, May 31st, that you’ll be joining. 

You also have the option of simply taking part in this without letting me know or receiving anything in return.

You are a limitless being and there are limitless reasons you might be reading this right now and it might be speaking to a part of you.

It’s completely up to you how or if you want to take this journey.

Yet, I assure you, by truly committing and upping your normal approach, your life will take a lovely turn.