Gratitude is a Way of Life

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This was written the day before Thanksgiving in anticipation of the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Wow! I arrived in Chacala yesterday, and what a treat! I am so grateful for this special place, and for the part of me that took the action to create a home here. Who woulda' thought?

It has been bright, sunny, and warm all day. But, wait, before I go on and on about Chacala, here is what I've been thinking about this Thanksgiving time in the USA:

I am receiving some wonderful mails and newsletters this Thanksgiving time and day tomorrow. Thank you all for writing. I want to take the idea of giving thanks out a little farther... to the power of gratitude.

When we find our way to gratitude as a way of life, we are in LOVE, simply and easily. You cannot truly be grateful and in fear at the same time. When you're not afraid, you can live in your default state of love and gratitude. Happiness.

The gratitude I am thinking of comes when we accept all that the universe is. We see the perfection of creation, and our hearts open to receive What IS. An apprentice once looked up "acceptance" in the dictionary (because I talk about it a lot), and found this definition: "Readiness to receive." When you are ready to receive part or all of this amazing universe just the way it is, you are in acceptance.

When you are ready to receive the magnificence of Life, how could you not be in Gratitude...? And when you find that place inside often enough, you have made it a way of Life. Gratitude is a way of Life. And it is the way of a Life of love, acceptance, and receptivity.

It is the Spiritual Warrior's way in the world.

So, for those celebrating, Happy Thanksgiving. For those not in the US or those rejecting the holiday, I invite you to embrace your gratitude for Life. It is quite a gift, you know.

Go out and hug a Pilgrim or a turkey! And be grateful you can.

And now about Chacala once again!

I arrived at my winter home, The House of the Eagles in Chacala, Nayarit, Mexico, yesterday. The temperature today has been in the mild 80's, the skies blue, and the jungle around town filled with green and the many colors of flowers and butterflies.

I urge you to consider joining me here-- for our annual Valentine's Week workshop (February 10~14), a personal intensive with me (mid-January and mid-March now available), or simply to relax on the beach and watch a beautiful sunset (come as you are).

We will also be celebrating New Year's in Chacala: "A Conscious Beginning ~ Embracing Abundance." Please join us.

Some of the details are here (The Joydancer site is under revision)

Please contact me directly for more information: allanh@sonic.net

Pictures speak a thousand words... here are 10,000 words about my beloved Chacala... I look forward to seeing you here.

Chacala is located 90 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta, in the state of Nayarit, on the tropical west coast of Mexico. Puerto Vallarta is an easy flight from everywhere. I can help you with transportation from PV and lodging in Chacala.

We are a village of about 400 wonderful and warm Mexican locals, and a small number of smart and/or lucky "internationals." The beach is clean and safe, the fish and shrimp at the beach restaurants are fresh from the sea. Sunsets can be spectacular. Comfortable lodging $40-65 USD per night.

Please pay no attention to the media sensationalism about violence in Mexico. Yes, there is trouble, mostly in border cities. I drove 2,065 miles down from Nogales, AZ, and most of Mexico remains a lovely, friendly, peaceful country. Puerto Vallarta is rated as one of the safest cities in the world -- and Chacala, well, watch out for those margaritas at Las Brisas on the beach!

There is NO reason for you not to come down. Join me for New Year's or Valentine's celebrations, a personal intensive of five days or more, or come on vacation and let me show you my paradise... and the best place on the beach for a margarita and sunset.

Did I mention it is warm in the middle of the winter!!??

Get in touch, and we'll go from there. My website is in a bit of disarray, so contact me directly as needed: allanh@sonic.net.

Yours in love and The New Dream of Peace in the Hearts of All Humans,

Allan

You Are Good Enough For Love

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The misperception that causes the most trouble in all relationships is the idea that we have to prove we are good enough to be worthy of love and acceptance. It is the basic lie of our childhood domestication, and the foundation of all the other life-limiting beliefs we've made in our lives. The lie says we won't be able to relax and really enjoy our lives until we have improved, enhanced, developed, achieved, and reached the ultimate in our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual skills and capabilities.

When you stop to think about it, it doesn't really make any sense. Does IT!? We have to be better to be worthy of love? Everyone has to be better than they are? Weird. Everyone has to reach higher standards of achievement than... who? Themselves? Each other?

We learned we weren't good enough when our caregivers set conditions for their love. They made it clear they were angry, disappointed, hurt, sad, or uninterested because of our attitudes, behaviors, or lack thereof. What we did wasn't good enough for them to be constantly delighted in us.

So we learned to hide our emotions, needs, and truth, in order to avoid their rejection and earn their approval, acceptance, safety, love, or interest. For many of us, the agreements from childhood became the agreements of our adult lives. Most adults believe they must prove their worth. And romantic relationships with that lie as a foundation are doomed to failure. When two people are trying to get each other's approval by pretending to be someone they are not in order to hold on to the "love" from the other... there is only fear, not real love.

Here it is:

"You can never be good enough by proving you are!"

I said that. And I'll say it again and again!! The only thing you have to do is KNOW you are okay right here, right now, in this moment -- you are a perfect, glorious inspiration of Life, from Life, and as Life. There is nothing to prove, defend, get right, justify, hide, or improve! You are actually the source of love in your life.

If you don't know that simple truth, your relationships will always be difficult, because you will always be trying to prove your worth, and denying the truth of the real you.

I counsel singles and couples to guide them to relationships based on the truth of the perfection of themselves, their partners, and the universe. It is the only way I know to be at peace and IN love, with self and others.

"Allan, we are increasingly appreciative of the time we spent with you, and for what an amazing teacher you are." L.M., Canada

I would be honored if you offered me the opportunity to support you in the same way I did with Kevin and Karen (a married couple I counseled in an article featured in "FIRST for Women" national magazine) and countless others in the last 20 years. We can work by Skype, phone, or here in Chacala during my Valentine's Relationship Retreat or with a personal intensive. I am here to serve you.

Please read about my counseling options here

Read the article about my work with Kevin and Karen here

Read my article about The New Relationship ~ Five Agreements to Make Love Come True


And purchase the 5 CD set of my Five Agreements here

Please contact me, and we'll go from there. My website is in a bit of disarray, so contact me directly as needed: allanh@sonic.net

Yours IN love and The New Dream of Peace in the Hearts of All Humans,


Allan