HER GODMOTHER BOOK TRAILER
Available at fine bookstores, including Barnes and Noble, barnesandnoble.com, amazon.com and other online stores.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Friday, August 8, 2008
What's Your Trigger?
By Cate Cavanagh
Everyone has a sore spot, an Achilles' Heal if you will. Sometimes it's something such as hearing screeching tires that our nerves like chalk squeaking on a blackboard. Sometimes it's Aunt Tilly's gaggling laugh. But when it comes to spiritual balance it is something else altogether.
Many of us have been looking at our self definitions and how we see ourselves. We have been exploring why we have these self definitions and have been working to redefine ourselves truthfully instead of painfully. We have also been working on our self image by dressing nicely even if we don't want to or putting on make up even if we do not like what we see in the mirror. In short, we have working on self transformation. But sometimes, no matter how much hard work we put into transforming ourselves we have a set back. So I will now ask you, what is your trigger? What is it that shakes you to the bottom of your soul to the point of losing ground,losing your inner balance?
For one it could be a birthday. Birthdays signal turning points and it is natural to reflect on our lives. Unfortunately, birthdays make us look at what we may have dreamed and not yet obtained. Another is a major holiday. It is not surprising that major holidays earmark horrible depression and high suicide rates. If divorced going to that cousin's wedding can also be a trigger to any number of issues we have not yet settled within ourselves. If watching our weight (if we have an eating disorder) that one piece of wedding cake could cause us to suddenly binge eat or purge. It is all about painful memories and issues that are triggered by what should be a fun event.
Sometimes, as with my case in particular, it is being around people who are drunk. You see my dad was an alcoholic and being around someone who is drunk brings back a flood of sad, childhood memories. For someone with a physical disability it could be hearing about someone's son making a college team. If you were never able to get a college education, running into a friend who did and who is "successful" can bring about feelings of failure.
All of the above are about "things". That's the bottom line here and these "things" tap into our fears: fear of failing, being too fat or too thin, fear of being continually disabled or of feeling inadequate. Does this all mean our working at self transformation is to no avail? On the contrary! It only means we have triggers reminding us of where we came from, not where we are going! On days were we have a setback we need to remember that is who we were, not who are or who we are becoming. If we can remember this we can ride through the rough spots and see that we are champions over our past.
Of course the best tool is, and it is hard, learning to live in the present. In HER GODMOTHER, Allie learns to be alive in the magical moment of now!
Book trailer:
The Elements of change
The young character in my book, HER GODMOTHER, is blessed with having the opportunity to begin learning how to think and react in a healthy way with regard to her special challenges. Most of us are not as fortunate and only after years of carrying burdens well into our adulthood do we reach a point of wanting to experience major changes in our lives.
Most of us have heard the old adage of how some people see the cup half full and others, half-empty. I have taken it a step further: some of us have to make our own cup. There is a way to look at life or how life treats you. One person can be an optimist- life has treated them well or at least fairly. Then there are others (pessimists) that life seems to have passed by or worse yet, dumped on. There are some people who, other than the grief from the inevitable loss of a loved one, live uncompromised lives. Yet, we all know people who, no matter how hard they try, have a rough ride just getting through life with their heads held high. For these people, life is difficult indeed.
Some people seem to gain opportunity just by being in the right place at the right time. Others must work hard, plan strategic moves and learn to know when to take that leap, leave the familiar and expand into a new area. The problem is, we often fall short somewhere between planning and knowing when to take that ‘leap’. Most of us prefer the comfortable. The comfortable does not have to be pleasant. It is what is known and familiar. Why else is it so hard for people to decide to move or relocate for a job? It is because change is difficult and frightening.
It is when life holds nothing exciting or enchanting, when we are in a rut we cannot climb out of that it becomes time to make a new cup. Making a new cup is not easy. We only know the cup we had and what was in it. If we truly do not like the old cup or what we were drinking from it, we have to look at ourselves and see how did we brew that drink that made it so bitter? We need to think about the kind of cup do we want now? What kind of new drink could we possibly make and how the heck do we start making a cup? Do we pour out the old drink altogether, do we throw out the cup? They both had their purpose for a long time. Do we want to really part with them?
These may all seem like rhetorical questions but they are not. You see to bring about change takes conscious effort. After all, we lived in our rut, with our rut and perpetuated our rut probably for a long time. We probably had all the reason in world to be in our rut to begin with. Our life path may have been extremely difficult or deprived, giving us every reason to be justified in having the fears we have and remaining with the familiar, even if it is uncomfortable. But, you know what? Changing is even more uncomfortable, especially if you begin from the standing point of no faith or trust. If you are starting at this standing point, you have to decide whether or not you are going to take a "leap" of the faith you do not yet have. You’re not sure what you believe in anymore, you just hope there is something to believe in because you surely do not believe in yourself. You reflect on your life and decide you really cannot stand another year, week or day of the same old routine so, you decide to work on changing. The beauty of this first decision is that you do not have to change anything about your environment. You don’t have to quit your job, you don’t have to relocate. You simply have to begin with your own package. You are the cup that is to be. You are going to fashion it and decide the stuff that will go into this new vessel.
It takes courage to decide to change because when you decide to work on change, you embark on an unsure majickal journey of thought transformation. In order to begin it is important that you do not want to harm anyone as you strive to meet goals. It is also important to accept you are a work in progress and will battle old habits along the way. It doesn't matter how graciously you begin your change. The important thing is a commitment to it for patience and time will bring changes in your life and in all things around you.
Enter basic majickal thought 101 upon which I base my school, Quantum spirituality, The Science of Change. The beauty of this is that you do not have to be a Wiccan or Witch. You can use the thought principles that go into casting spells and apply them to yourself on a very personal level. As you think, see what it is you want, taste what it is you want and wait. Some people sit quietly and imagine VIVIDLY their desire. Others people will write it down and send their dreams into the fire by burning the paper because it is an effective way to send energies into the Universe! But, there’s more. The flame of the match creates energy, the burning of the paper and the subsequent smoke is all energy. This practice is so successful, anonymous groups use this exercise very successfully to purge anger, rage or sorrow. But, you can use this tool to create change by writing down the things you need, want or desire without belonging to a coven or annonymous group. You can use this tool as a solitary worker working on self improvement. Acceptance is very important. We must all be willing to accept that not all difficulties are karmic. It is thinking inside of an empowerment arena within which you envision yourself the winner in your bout with the by nemesis, disenchantment. Since I do believe all things are fixed I see no reason why timetables can't be pushed up either once we decide we need and want change more quickly. Since we do not know, for the most part, what is and is not fixed, should we sit on the sidelines deciding this is karma and that is karma? Too many people fritter precious away contemplating what is karma and forget that can make and even change our karma with the right mind set.
The next time you go to a party and look around. Invariably the person having the most fun will be the person who is dressed neatly, appears to have made an effort in the area of grooming, smiles easily and in general emits an openness to meeting people. Now look for the ‘wallflower’. Wallflowers are not born. They are made. The wallflower will stand to the side and appear as if, not expecting to have a good time, no effort was made into appearance. This goes for men or women. Does a wallflower seem approachable? Probably not. Insecurity is projected as loudly as a scream. So wallflowers in actuality, bring about their own anticipated outcome. When it comes to your life are you still wallowing? Are you the wallflower at the your own party?
Jewish wisdom teaches that each life is a blank slate, that no soul has a recollection of its previous knowledge. I say if we allow ourselves to be touched by our own spirit power that is programmed to get us going rather than rationalizing such effort away. We can gain or regain previous knowledge provided we are open minded enough to watch, listen and feel!
Keep in mind that meeting the challenge of redefining ourselves as wonderful, loving, courageous and deserving of joy, can bring about change. How quickly something is achieved depends on our focusing skills but also on how many years we contributed to the circumstance we wish to change. We may have to unravel our own psychological problems first but we must decide we want to change ourselves. How many times and for how long did we tell ourselves it could not be done, hence closing ourselves off to opportunities by not just being blind to them but actually preventing them from coming our way because we fed our negativity. So the next step is wanting to change. More to the point are you ready to change?
Most of us have heard the old adage of how some people see the cup half full and others, half-empty. I have taken it a step further: some of us have to make our own cup. There is a way to look at life or how life treats you. One person can be an optimist- life has treated them well or at least fairly. Then there are others (pessimists) that life seems to have passed by or worse yet, dumped on. There are some people who, other than the grief from the inevitable loss of a loved one, live uncompromised lives. Yet, we all know people who, no matter how hard they try, have a rough ride just getting through life with their heads held high. For these people, life is difficult indeed.
Some people seem to gain opportunity just by being in the right place at the right time. Others must work hard, plan strategic moves and learn to know when to take that leap, leave the familiar and expand into a new area. The problem is, we often fall short somewhere between planning and knowing when to take that ‘leap’. Most of us prefer the comfortable. The comfortable does not have to be pleasant. It is what is known and familiar. Why else is it so hard for people to decide to move or relocate for a job? It is because change is difficult and frightening.
It is when life holds nothing exciting or enchanting, when we are in a rut we cannot climb out of that it becomes time to make a new cup. Making a new cup is not easy. We only know the cup we had and what was in it. If we truly do not like the old cup or what we were drinking from it, we have to look at ourselves and see how did we brew that drink that made it so bitter? We need to think about the kind of cup do we want now? What kind of new drink could we possibly make and how the heck do we start making a cup? Do we pour out the old drink altogether, do we throw out the cup? They both had their purpose for a long time. Do we want to really part with them?
These may all seem like rhetorical questions but they are not. You see to bring about change takes conscious effort. After all, we lived in our rut, with our rut and perpetuated our rut probably for a long time. We probably had all the reason in world to be in our rut to begin with. Our life path may have been extremely difficult or deprived, giving us every reason to be justified in having the fears we have and remaining with the familiar, even if it is uncomfortable. But, you know what? Changing is even more uncomfortable, especially if you begin from the standing point of no faith or trust. If you are starting at this standing point, you have to decide whether or not you are going to take a "leap" of the faith you do not yet have. You’re not sure what you believe in anymore, you just hope there is something to believe in because you surely do not believe in yourself. You reflect on your life and decide you really cannot stand another year, week or day of the same old routine so, you decide to work on changing. The beauty of this first decision is that you do not have to change anything about your environment. You don’t have to quit your job, you don’t have to relocate. You simply have to begin with your own package. You are the cup that is to be. You are going to fashion it and decide the stuff that will go into this new vessel.
It takes courage to decide to change because when you decide to work on change, you embark on an unsure majickal journey of thought transformation. In order to begin it is important that you do not want to harm anyone as you strive to meet goals. It is also important to accept you are a work in progress and will battle old habits along the way. It doesn't matter how graciously you begin your change. The important thing is a commitment to it for patience and time will bring changes in your life and in all things around you.
Enter basic majickal thought 101 upon which I base my school, Quantum spirituality, The Science of Change. The beauty of this is that you do not have to be a Wiccan or Witch. You can use the thought principles that go into casting spells and apply them to yourself on a very personal level. As you think, see what it is you want, taste what it is you want and wait. Some people sit quietly and imagine VIVIDLY their desire. Others people will write it down and send their dreams into the fire by burning the paper because it is an effective way to send energies into the Universe! But, there’s more. The flame of the match creates energy, the burning of the paper and the subsequent smoke is all energy. This practice is so successful, anonymous groups use this exercise very successfully to purge anger, rage or sorrow. But, you can use this tool to create change by writing down the things you need, want or desire without belonging to a coven or annonymous group. You can use this tool as a solitary worker working on self improvement. Acceptance is very important. We must all be willing to accept that not all difficulties are karmic. It is thinking inside of an empowerment arena within which you envision yourself the winner in your bout with the by nemesis, disenchantment. Since I do believe all things are fixed I see no reason why timetables can't be pushed up either once we decide we need and want change more quickly. Since we do not know, for the most part, what is and is not fixed, should we sit on the sidelines deciding this is karma and that is karma? Too many people fritter precious away contemplating what is karma and forget that can make and even change our karma with the right mind set.
The next time you go to a party and look around. Invariably the person having the most fun will be the person who is dressed neatly, appears to have made an effort in the area of grooming, smiles easily and in general emits an openness to meeting people. Now look for the ‘wallflower’. Wallflowers are not born. They are made. The wallflower will stand to the side and appear as if, not expecting to have a good time, no effort was made into appearance. This goes for men or women. Does a wallflower seem approachable? Probably not. Insecurity is projected as loudly as a scream. So wallflowers in actuality, bring about their own anticipated outcome. When it comes to your life are you still wallowing? Are you the wallflower at the your own party?
Jewish wisdom teaches that each life is a blank slate, that no soul has a recollection of its previous knowledge. I say if we allow ourselves to be touched by our own spirit power that is programmed to get us going rather than rationalizing such effort away. We can gain or regain previous knowledge provided we are open minded enough to watch, listen and feel!
Keep in mind that meeting the challenge of redefining ourselves as wonderful, loving, courageous and deserving of joy, can bring about change. How quickly something is achieved depends on our focusing skills but also on how many years we contributed to the circumstance we wish to change. We may have to unravel our own psychological problems first but we must decide we want to change ourselves. How many times and for how long did we tell ourselves it could not be done, hence closing ourselves off to opportunities by not just being blind to them but actually preventing them from coming our way because we fed our negativity. So the next step is wanting to change. More to the point are you ready to change?
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Books that are about magic (CHRONICLES OF NARNIA, THE LORD OF THE RINGS TRILOGY and HARRY POTTER) continue to elicit rising interest in the magical genre and this book will have appeal to children and adults alike. Unlike Harry Potter books, Her Godmother is a true depiction of magic as practiced in the magical/Wiccan community. Her Godmother also addresses the disease of alcoholism and shows it is not influenced by income nor ethnicity. The AA program is introduced as are some of the steps as tools for healing the wounds children and adult children of alcoholics carry within. As an adult child of an alcoholic this is a situation I have personally experienced. HER GODMOTHER educates about this disease and provides insight into the healing process while creating an imaginative and enchanting novel.
About the book:
Allie is experiencing a family breakup. Her father is an alcoholic. Her mother decides to have Allie stay with her godmother in upstate rural New York while she makes plans to start life over and relocate so although magic is a large part of this story, HER GODMOTHER is a creative tale of coping and rethinking how to heal by discovering joy in a mundane yet disappointing world.
While upstate Allie learns about the the wonder of wildlife. Adding to the fun mix of delightful events is Jasper, the squirrel that taps on her godmother's window, Sally the rotund cat who is a magical character with a story of her own, the family of skunks that live under the house, the bats that live in the roof and Jupiter the nonmagical, mischievous huge mutt. Allie is having a wonderful time until one night, when awakened by a thunderstorm, she peeks out of her window to see her godmother dancing on the lawn in the rain. Who is this woman her mother sent her to stay with? What Allie is about to discover is that her godmother is rather "colorful" or should we say...
It is important to note that although HER GODMOTHER is mystical no one is changed into cats nor does anyone fly on broomsticks. Readers venture with Allie on the Wiccan path to healing and discover with her that ordinary life is really a series of enchantments that will capture the hearts of both children and adults.
Witches are among us and like Brigid (the godmother) live quietly in every community. HER GODMOTHER dispels erroneous thinking about the gentle, caring belief of Wicca which is authentic on its depiction. As a adult child of an alcoholic, Cate weaves the complexity of tis controversy while fostering a deeper understanding of alcoholism and its impact on families, especially children.
The back drop of this book is Livingston Manor, the town in which Cate lives. As the denizens of this town know the weather is rather quirky. This book is authentic in bringing this town to life so the reader can be entertained with the charm and weather unpredictability of this area in Sullivan County, New York.
HER GODMOTHER has a writing style that is easy for children to read while not "writing down" so that the story and style alike will also attract adult readers. The beauty of this book is that it cannot be put into a box that limits readership. It will be appealing to adults, children, those interested in magic as well as those familiar with the heartache of alcoholism.
About Cate: She is a practicing Witch whose my first book, GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT, continues to receive rave reviews. she is also a published poet whose work has appeared in poetry anthologies. I am also a published print columnist, had a political program on WJJ, an NPR affiliate, as well as a podcast political commentator on Internet Radio Voices. Her work has also appeared in Lightsouce, SelfGrowth and Espirit. She is frequent contributor to Witchvox.
She was asked toto write the forward for widely known metaphysician within the spiritual community, Myriam Maytorena. Her book, LIFE WITH MOTHER, is a touching story of care giving for her mother during the end stages of her life.
Combining the elements of magic, the profundity of alcoholism and fun HER GODMOTHER will be the next feel good book of the year.
Popular author Janet Elaine Smith wrote the forward and excerpted part of this forward as an endorsement on the back cover. Known Wiccan author, Theresa Chaze also wrote a review for the back cover as well.
HER GODMOTHER is available through Barnes and noble, other fine bookstores, barnesandnoble.com and amazon.com
Respectfully,
Cate Cavanagh
About the book:
Allie is experiencing a family breakup. Her father is an alcoholic. Her mother decides to have Allie stay with her godmother in upstate rural New York while she makes plans to start life over and relocate so although magic is a large part of this story, HER GODMOTHER is a creative tale of coping and rethinking how to heal by discovering joy in a mundane yet disappointing world.
While upstate Allie learns about the the wonder of wildlife. Adding to the fun mix of delightful events is Jasper, the squirrel that taps on her godmother's window, Sally the rotund cat who is a magical character with a story of her own, the family of skunks that live under the house, the bats that live in the roof and Jupiter the nonmagical, mischievous huge mutt. Allie is having a wonderful time until one night, when awakened by a thunderstorm, she peeks out of her window to see her godmother dancing on the lawn in the rain. Who is this woman her mother sent her to stay with? What Allie is about to discover is that her godmother is rather "colorful" or should we say...
It is important to note that although HER GODMOTHER is mystical no one is changed into cats nor does anyone fly on broomsticks. Readers venture with Allie on the Wiccan path to healing and discover with her that ordinary life is really a series of enchantments that will capture the hearts of both children and adults.
Witches are among us and like Brigid (the godmother) live quietly in every community. HER GODMOTHER dispels erroneous thinking about the gentle, caring belief of Wicca which is authentic on its depiction. As a adult child of an alcoholic, Cate weaves the complexity of tis controversy while fostering a deeper understanding of alcoholism and its impact on families, especially children.
The back drop of this book is Livingston Manor, the town in which Cate lives. As the denizens of this town know the weather is rather quirky. This book is authentic in bringing this town to life so the reader can be entertained with the charm and weather unpredictability of this area in Sullivan County, New York.
HER GODMOTHER has a writing style that is easy for children to read while not "writing down" so that the story and style alike will also attract adult readers. The beauty of this book is that it cannot be put into a box that limits readership. It will be appealing to adults, children, those interested in magic as well as those familiar with the heartache of alcoholism.
About Cate: She is a practicing Witch whose my first book, GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT, continues to receive rave reviews. she is also a published poet whose work has appeared in poetry anthologies. I am also a published print columnist, had a political program on WJJ, an NPR affiliate, as well as a podcast political commentator on Internet Radio Voices. Her work has also appeared in Lightsouce, SelfGrowth and Espirit. She is frequent contributor to Witchvox.
She was asked toto write the forward for widely known metaphysician within the spiritual community, Myriam Maytorena. Her book, LIFE WITH MOTHER, is a touching story of care giving for her mother during the end stages of her life.
Combining the elements of magic, the profundity of alcoholism and fun HER GODMOTHER will be the next feel good book of the year.
Popular author Janet Elaine Smith wrote the forward and excerpted part of this forward as an endorsement on the back cover. Known Wiccan author, Theresa Chaze also wrote a review for the back cover as well.
HER GODMOTHER is available through Barnes and noble, other fine bookstores, barnesandnoble.com and amazon.com
Respectfully,
Cate Cavanagh
A Pocket Full Of Miracles
Are you in a dark place? Are you feeling like a victim to your circumstances? Are you emotionally fumbling? Do you feel your life has nothing miraculous in it? Everyone goes through rough times and everyone has times where they feel abandoned spiritually, losing hope through times of lacking faith. None of us are alone when it comes to experiencing the despair of darkness. Finding hope and faith can be difficult at these times but not impossible to obtain or regain.
I have found counting blessings not at night (as the song goes) but in the morning helps me frame my mental attitude for the day. Another is my mantra "I am blessed." You see over time you will feel blessed. Wish someone a blessed day and you will get a smile. Blessings are easy to give so why not give yourself as many as you can? Before we can see our blessings however, we may have to do some math.
There are 186,000 seconds in a day. This means on a given day if we have food on the table, no matter how meager, we have 186,000 blessings or miracles. Now if you add having a roof over your head your miracles for that day have now doubled to 372,000 miracles. It is all a matter of perspective. If you have active children add 186,000 miracles to each one. Is at least one parent alive? If so add another 186,000 miracles to your day. If you recovering from illness you are fortunate to be around to do so. True there may be really serious problems you are facing but if you are not consumed today by them, you have just found more moments of miracles.
The power to undergo our hardships gracefully is a matter of perspective and having faith and spirituality basically in tact. The next time you feel overwhelmed by your situation stop and do the math. Cate
Please take a moment to watch my book trailer. As Allie begins her journey of healing she encounters miracles of her own...
I have found counting blessings not at night (as the song goes) but in the morning helps me frame my mental attitude for the day. Another is my mantra "I am blessed." You see over time you will feel blessed. Wish someone a blessed day and you will get a smile. Blessings are easy to give so why not give yourself as many as you can? Before we can see our blessings however, we may have to do some math.
There are 186,000 seconds in a day. This means on a given day if we have food on the table, no matter how meager, we have 186,000 blessings or miracles. Now if you add having a roof over your head your miracles for that day have now doubled to 372,000 miracles. It is all a matter of perspective. If you have active children add 186,000 miracles to each one. Is at least one parent alive? If so add another 186,000 miracles to your day. If you recovering from illness you are fortunate to be around to do so. True there may be really serious problems you are facing but if you are not consumed today by them, you have just found more moments of miracles.
The power to undergo our hardships gracefully is a matter of perspective and having faith and spirituality basically in tact. The next time you feel overwhelmed by your situation stop and do the math. Cate
Please take a moment to watch my book trailer. As Allie begins her journey of healing she encounters miracles of her own...
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