Do not waste your Heart on fear!!

 "May I have the courage today

To live the life that I would love,

To postpone my dream no longer,

But do at last what I came here for

And waste my heart no more on fear.

                    John O'Donohue

Can I get a YES?????????  We have got this.  Life, I mean.  Yes, there are things in the world that stink...but that does not give us the excuse of wasting this beautiful soul of ours to fear.  

What are we capable if we let go of fear and dream again?  

               Denise

The joy of work

 "It is the enjoyment of every step in the process of doing; everything not only the isolated piece we label art...  If you want to rush to the accomplishment, it is an inevitable disappointment. Then you rush to something else. The disappointment is repeated over and over again.  But if every step is pleasant, then the accomplishment becomes even more, because it is nourished by what is going on."

"All the stages of one's work have a poetic nature."

                                         Sue Bender  Plain and Simple

Clutter clearing gives you breathing space to live. And this is good.

But there is more.  When you learn how to make your daily work a practice of love, that's when you transcend your work into something extraordinary. 

When you can shift your work...no matter how ordinary, boring or below your pay grade.  When your work becomes your art. When you change the very nature of what you are doing. When you shift your long held beliefs about your work.   In this process, your work becomes healing.

If you would have said to me, what I just said to you when I was a girl on the farm, I would have fell into a heap of giggles and complete disbelief.  And yet, here I am, after 30 plus years of  this practice...sometimes kicking and screaming...I get it.  At least today I do.  

Our daily work is a practice.  Sometimes this work is a deep practice.  With one foot in front of the other through gritted teeth. But the art does happen.   Work becomes poetic. More and more frequently I feel it now.  Our daily work is the rhythm of our life.  It is an act of love.

This morning I was reminded of a great conversation I had with a wise client 13 years ago.  At that time,  I was just really beginning this deeper practice of home care. Little did I know where it would take me. Somehow the path just kept opening up to me as if saying "stay here, go deep, create art while you work, share it with kindred souls who think your crazy"!" And low and behold, here I am sharing this message with you my friend.

May your journey be sweet and long.  May your dishes be a time of joy, your pick up a space of gratitude and your vacuuming an act of love.  May you never "work" another day.

                                                       Denise Frakes... Life, home and work coach

8 delightful habits to cultivate...in your home...during a pandemic.

 The essential qualities that make a healthy home...are simply true.  These qualities are timeless.  They help us see beyond our current and into a world that is rich.  They help us create homes and families that are nourishing, healthy and sustaining.  I hope you enjoy these quotes that I've gathered for you.  

                                          Happy Holidays, from my home to yours,  Denise

1.   Simplify 

"Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it". – Joshua Becker

"Pare down to the essence, but don't remove the poetry. Keep things clean and unencumbered, but don't sterilize."  Leonard Koren  Wabi Sabi

2.   Tidy Up

"It is not our memories but the person we have become of those past experiences that we should treasure. This is the lesson these keepsakes teach us when we sort them. The space in which we live should be for the person we are becoming now, not for the person we were in the past"   Marie Kondo...the life changing Magic of Tidying up

3.    Breathe ...pause and breathe

“Let go of the battle. Breathe quietly and let it be. Let your body relax and your heart soften. Open to whatever you experience without fighting.”
― Jack Kornfield, A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life

4.    Add in Splashes of Joy

“A body of research is emerging that demonstrates a clear link between our surroundings and our mental health. For example, studies show that people with sunny workspaces sleep better and laugh more than their peers in dimly lit offices, and that flowers improve not only people’s moods but their memory as well.”
― Ingrid Fetell Lee, Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness

"And what does it feel like?" we asked. "Well," she said, leaning over to us like a secret,  "it feels like a gust of wind blowing inside your heart. It feels like bright yellow paint." Monique Duval  The persistence of yellow

5.    Practice Gratitude

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” —Albert Einstein

“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” —Charles Dickens

6.    Cultivate your Beauty Muscle

"Beauty is abundantly present. In old things, brown fields, weary days, prickly people...the art of beauty is learning to see beauty everywhere, in everyone, everyday.  Seeing beauty is a way of seeing, a muscle to strengthen."  Denise Frakes

"Beauty can be coaxed out of ugliness...Wabi-Sabi suggests that beauty is a dynamic event that occurs between you and something else.  beauty can spontaneously occur at any moment given the proper circumstances, context, or point of view.  Beauty thus is an altered state of consciousness, an extraordinary moment of poetry and grace"  Leonard Koren Wabi Sabi for artists, designers, poets and philosophers

7.   Nature...bring it in and go outside 

“Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” –John Muir

“I go to Nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put together.” –John Burroughs

“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” –Albert Einstein

8.   LOVE!!!

“The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.”

— Morrie Schwartz

“The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.” 

— Helen Keller

Of all things...I believe in us.  I believe in bluebells, curious calves, and how the mundane acts of everyday..is where life can become rich...or dreary.

What you believe is an essential quality of a healthy home...and joyful life.

What do you believe in...?

         Denise

Clutter clearing is spiritual

Clutter clearing is spiritual.  Clutter effects us physically, mentally, emotionally...and spiritually.  When you walk into a room and your energy drops, your confidence fades and you can't breathe...this weight builds on and depletes your soul.  

I was drawn to my work in clutter clearing, not to create perfectly tidy homes but to create space for the beautiful souls that live there. 

There are no perfect homes but the souls that live there are naturally perfect.  We all have a story and an authentic calling.  My joy, my job is to see the beauty beyond the stuff. To support the path of each spirit that lives inside.  

By no means am I a perfect clutter clearer.  Heavens, I'm not perfect at anything.  Which in itself is perfect, because my work is not to fix but to uncover that which was there all along.  It takes one imperfectly...perfect soul to see that beauty in another

I believe in my heart, we are all beautiful, creative and important to this world.  When our souls and energies are depleted we don't shine.  Our authentic gifts get bogged down in life.  

Clutter clearing is a practical and incredibly effective practice to shift the energy of a home...and our lives in the process.  The magic of shifting a space, of releasing old memories, stuck energy, over stuffed places and general ugh.. is transformational.  

There is a physical response to a room being shifted, cleaned and uplifted. I can feel it in my body.  My breath expands- literally, it's like life rushes into my chest. 

When you clean and unclutter, when you open your windows and let fresh air in, you are creating flow for your spirit to awaken and thrive.   

 I write and talk on cleaning, tools, habits and healthy homes ... all of which are very important. But at the heart of my work, is not to help you create a shiny home but a shiny spirit.  A home that supports your authentic beautiful soul.  A home that is healthy, easy, nourishing and.. feels like a big breath of fresh air...and a cozy hug.

In this time of pandemics, wild fires and physical distancing, creating a space that lets you rest deeply and feel nourished is essential.  It's easy to gather up more things to fill voids and even get bogged down and not care for this space.   

So turn off the TV, turn on some music.  If the air is healthy outside, open up your windows wide and create a space for yourself...even a little shift.  A tiny space refreshed will have a profound effect on your spirit.  Clean off your desk, wash your sheets, take a shower, pick up your floors...it all matters!  If you need a little boost along the way, you know who to call.

     From my spirit to yours,  Denise

               

Don't panic...it's spring...time to clean

Wow, what a month!  Yesterday, I found myself getting lost in the "what if loop".  It wasn't fear of the virus. I'm confident in our abilities to prevent and heal from that. No, what I was feeling was economic fear.  Fear of the unknown state of our economy.

So what can we do?  First of all don't panic.  Year's ago, my friend Sarah, told me of going on a river rafting trip with her family.  They ran into some rapids and her brother flew out of the raft.  Sarah started yelling.  "Everyone stay calm, nobody panic!!!!"  She said she was totally panicking, but somehow by telling others to stay calm, she was calmed."  What happened?  Her brother got back in the boat and they continued down the river.

Whenever I think of panicking, I think of Sarah and saying  "don't panic, everybody stay calm!"  It helps.

Beyond not panicking… what can we do?  What I know for sure is when we are happy and healthy our brains work better, we are better problem solvers, more creative and our immune systems stronger.  When our homes are calm, clean, tidy and thoughtfully created, we are happier and healthier.

So we have work to do.  Instead of panicking, we need to get to work.  Outside, spring is bursting at the seams.  Which means, no matter what you hear in the news, spring is still springing.  Spring is the season of renewal, fresh starts and explosions of joy.  It is also time to do a little spring cleaning.  Spring cleaning for our bodies, minds, homes, neighborhoods and businesses.  Spring cleaning is the intentional act of renewal, refreshing and rebooting so we can begin again.

Funny thing about cleaning. It makes us feel better. When our environments are happy, calm, easy, clean and well cared for, we naturally feel the same. A nourishing space, calms our nervous system.
So instead of panicking...it's time to roll up our sleeves, start cleaning out the clutter, the stagnate spaces of our homes and lives.  

From this space we can breathe.  We need to let our beautiful, resilient spirits and minds work at a high level of creativity and vision.

While we are at it, let's start picking up our neighborhoods and getting the trash off the streets. Clean up our yards and create spaces where we feel prosperous and happy.  When in doubt, don't panic and start cleaning.  You will be surprised how this old, simple act of shifting our spaces- refreshes our spirits and restores our confidence.

If you start feeling weary, shut off the TV, the social media accounts and your pop up reminders.  Open up the windows, clean house, get outside and start pulling weeds and cleaning out beds.  Grab a bag and go pick up trash in the woods, in your neighborhoods.  Go outside and hang out in spring.

Action- reduces fear.  Cleaning is an action of renewal.  Cleaning is like spring. No matter what we do as humans, spring will still surprises us with beauty and delight.  We are resilient, and creative beings..

   When we are happy...our immune systems are stronger, we are more resilient and creative...
                  Denise
                       Coach

Simple hand scrub for dry skin

Tis the season of dry skin.  Last night my hands were dry and feeling winter rough - catchy.  Catchy - you know when your skin sticks to nylon -silk type material.  Microfibers are the worst. augh!!

There is a simple, inexpensive solution at your fingertips!  Shop your pantry!  I love recipes with limited ingredients and few steps.  This is so easy- in less than 5 minutes you will have soft smooth and happy hands again.

Ingredients:
                     Oil
I used my kitchen's organic olive oil but feel free to use Organic: sunflower oil, sesame oil, avocado oil, walnut oil and safflower oils.  Anything you cook with will work.  You are using organic oils to cook with right??
                    Salt &/or sugar
  A fine salt but sugar or a combo of both would have been heavenly as well.  My favorite salts for a scrub are fine salts.  Leave the course salts for cooking.

Directions:  Last night I simply poured a little salt in my hand followed by a little olive oil.  Then rubbed my hands together for 2-5 minutes.  Get everywhere!  Rinse and dry!  Walla the worlds easiest, least expense and most productive hand scrub ever!

I decided to post this recipe this morning when I woke up and noticed how insanely soft and smooth my hands.

Enjoy!  Wishing you the gift of simplicity for the holidays,
                    Denise

Senseless Acts of Beauty

Yesterday, I was working with a client and dear friend.  Clutter clearing tends to do that...create friends.  Anyway, during our downsizing travels we came upon an old bumper sticker.  I have heard the phrase of practicing random acts of kindness lots of time which is great message.   But on this particular bumper sticker was the addition of ..
and Senseless Acts of Beauty.

There is something in those simple lines that has struck a cord with me.  Senseless Acts of Beauty.. I'm not even sure what it means but I do know it is magnificent to the soul.

   What is a Senseless Act of Beauty and how often do you Practice Senseless Acts of Beauty?

Today is Saturday.  I'm working and I will also be discovering and practicing this idea and the uncharted territory of Senseless Acts of Beauty.

This is why we let go and clean out our homes...to discover what lights up our souls...
     
As Always, I wish you a happy home and today may I add Senseless Acts of Beauty,
            Denise