November/December 1998
Articles on the theme "Family & Friends"
A Family Role Model
by Ethel Gillette
An account of how Bill Cosby in his
Cosby Show provided a much needed and inspiring example of real family values.
We're All Related
by Bob Gonzalez
Expanding one's view of family and friends to include the realization that
we are all one spirit.
A Soulful Season
by Edwina Holloway
Some suggestions for making the holiday
season more truly meaningful.
The Magic of our Differences
by Rev. Pat Cross
Friends and family - the ultimate gifts
of God's creation. Our human differences and our essential oneness.
Extend Your Family
by Cydné Battreall
If your current family does not meet
your needs, extend it! How to go about it.
The Family of Friends
by Sylvia Jackson
What it takes to be a friend and to
have a friend. True friendship in adversity.
Beyond Family and Friends
by ISA
The true solution to the need for family
and friends.
The Power of Our Thoughts
by Dr. Audrey Craft Davis
How we can use our thoughts to protect
ourselves and those we love.
Other Feature Articles
Natural Health Q&A
by David Simon M.Ac.
A practical discussion of the why's
and how's of weight loss.
2000 and Beyond!
Y2K = TEOTWAWKI?
by David Findlay
Mineral Kingdom
by Judy Power
Featured stones for November and December:
Lapis and Amethyst.
What is . . . Olestra?
by Susan Moyers
A fat-free "fat" that may
not be such a good idea after all.
Extend Your Family
Rev. Cydné Battreall
Is your nuclear family whole and complete, supportive and loving? Is it emotionally and physically available to meet your needs? If your answer is "Yes", I celebrate your path and am very happy for you and for them! However, if you answer, "What would that be like?" or "I don't think so!" Then perhaps this message will speak to your heart.
I have my only child, her fiancé and my grandson here in Florida near me. The rest of my nuclear family lives in Michigan, Texas and Australia. Miles aren't the only thing that separate us. Unfortunately, we are emotionally disconnected as well. The closest part of my family to me was my mother. Several years ago she died of lung cancer and created a major void in my life.
When my clients speak of a void created by the loss of a family member, I always ask them, "Have you ever considered adopting an 'extended family' member?" I share my experience and let them know it can be such a special gift to each person it touches. It is an emotional and spiritual healing tool. It is also an opportunity to receive much more than one gives.
A few years after my mother died, I attended a class at a Unity Church and found myself seated at a table with a beautiful, elderly lady with white hair. Her name was Victoria. After our second week of class I shared with her that she reminded me of my mother who was no longer alive and she then shared with me that she had lost her eldest son a few years before. I then received a precious gift when she said to me, "I can be your mother now." She sends me cards for special occasions to "Dear daughter." Those loving sentiments and that experience didn't have to end for me. Because of her willingness to share her motherly spirit with me, I am able to continue to love both my moms, and not live in the void of motherless consciousness.
In this past year my daughter was challenged with the diagnosis of ovarian cancer. I needed someone to help me hold my world together. I needed to share my greatest fears and concerns. My adopted mother was right there to help support me by drawing from her experience and strength through losing a child of her own. This is extended family at its healing best. [The latest report on Allison is that her tumor is almost gone and she is healthier today than she has been in a year. We used a Neuro-Linguistic Programming method that focused her body's natural healing abilities directly onto her tumor, combined with constant prayer. The tumor shrunk 50% (verified by consistent monitoring) to the amazement of her doctors. A few months later she consented to a regimen of chemo therapy and nutritional supplements, which also contributed to the remission. Thank You God!]
When ordering up an extended family member there are a few spiritual tools you can use. You can write a wish list of qualities you specifically desire in that person, then keep it under your pillow. Be specific so the universe knows just how to fill your order. You'd be surprised how well this works, and you can use it for anything you desire to bring into your life: cars, housing, significant others, etc.
You can further design your new extended family member by making a treasure map. Cut out pictures from magazines and glue them to a poster board. Keep it where you can see it daily. Include pictures of examples of interests you wish to share together, like books, a boat or wooded paths for taking walks. Choose a picture of a individual that closely represents the likeness of the person you wish to draw to you. Write across the top of the poster "Adopted Mom, Dad or Daughter Wanted".
There are also personal growth workshops, educational or alternative fun classes to be taken. With this experience also comes the opportunity to build good friendships and extended family bonds. A few years ago I walked away from my Neuro-Linguistic Programming training experience with a certification certificate and an "adopted sister." Very recently I attended a personal empowerment weekend seminar in Tampa that changed my life profoundly. I was deeply touched by a "brother spirit" when we supported each other's walk through similar inner child, sexual abuse issues. I know that if either of us ever needs love and support in the future it will be available in a heart-beat, no questions asked! There is not enough money in the whole world that can buy a gift such as this.
During the same weekend I watched a man that lost his wife and children recently to divorce, reconnect himself spiritually by extending himself to those in the group. He requested that we gather regularly after the seminar ended to not lose contact. Out of one man's need and the courage to express it, an extended family has grown around many of us. That same group extends itself to support yet another family member, a woman similarly torn apart by her divorce that is facing her greatest fear . . . learning to be alone for the first time in her life. She now has extended family to call on to support her.
Extended family offers life renewed. My life is most certainly fuller and richer because of the loving persons I've allowed to expand my world in the sense of family. It's definitely a powerful tool for letting God's love flow in and through us. I invite you to open yourself to the endless possibilities of extended family.
Cydné Battreall, a neuro-linguistic practitioner, specializes in restoring a person's power through spiritual and mental clearing. Palm Harbor and St. Petersburg, FL: (727) 772-9528, (727) 981-3322.