I recently returned from a memorable trip to Australia. A highlight was the time my daughter, Melissa, and I swam with the dolphins. With only 15 places around the world to swim with wild dolphins, the town of Forster, a 3 ½ hour drive north of Sydney, offered a pristine location to say “G’day” to Flipper and friends.

We sailed with 12 other adventurers on a 34-foot catamaran to find a pod of wild dolphins frolicking in the open ocean. Donning wetsuit, snorkel and mask, we each took turns in the water.

The procedure was simple: jump in, grab the rope extending from the bow, pull myself forward, and, with left hand hanging onto the rope and left foot resting in a loop, exhale through the snorkel while emitting a strange sound, “Whoooooo, whooooooo.”

The skipper informed us that dolphins weren’t there to entertain us; we were there to entertain them. So if we wanted them to swim under and around us, we needed to entertain them with high-pitched noises. Sure enough, the curiosity seekers swarmed nearby. I felt like I was the main attraction, performing in a sea world to amuse the mammals.

The down under dolphins probably said, “A strange bloke with a tube stuck out of his mouth is making a bloody racket. Let’s check him out.”

I enjoyed getting checked out. The sleek creatures made me realize how beautifully attuned they were to their environment. They were always curious, played like little children with apparently little conflict, consciously breathed, and appeared to be forever smiling. I wanted to be more like them!!

If you ever find yourself overwhelmed with stress or struggling in life, mimic a dolphin. Consciously breathe, smile often, bring out your inner child, be curious, have fun, and swim with a friend.

If you’re ever interested in visiting Australia on a spiritual odyssey, let me know. I’m planning a future tour to swim with the dolphins.

G’day and Welcome Home!

Leonard

Brrrrr! Catch the snowstorm in a Southern California desert.

Click youtube link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Tz5kglEogg

I just returned from a weekend in the high desert in Southern California. I planned to enjoy the rejuvenating waters of a hot mineral spring and witness the desert flowers blooming this time of the year. Sometimes the best laid intentions can get turned upside down – especially during a storm.

The storm turned out to be a thick blanket of snow surrounding the area of Warner Springs where hot sulfur baths heat the body at 104 degrees. The dramatic shift in weather made me realize that unexpected changes can occur in an instant. Even the trees had difficulty adjusting as a number of branches cracked under the weight of the accumulating snow.

The sudden climactic change made me contemplate the very nature of change. I tend to organize my life by setting intentions and expectations to complete projects, further my career, maintain relationships, achieve optimum health, and establish financial security. However, the universe doesn’t always work according to my plans. It relishes surprises such as snow in the desert. While I personally don’t like the cold, I was offered an opportunity to melt my perspective.

One thing is for certain. We will all experience unexpected changes at some time or another. They may be mild relational rifts such as those that occur with couples and families or they may be severe life-threatening challenges or devastating financial crises. Though the disruptions may wrench us out of our comfort zones, they can teach us important life-altering lessons and help us grow as human beings.

Fortunately, when faced with any change, we can choose our responses. We can complain about snow or we can bundle up and admire a winter fairyland.

So when life hands you a cold, bone-chilling incident, practice these tips to warm up and :

• Witness the change as an unfolding process. After all, each day offers two stark contrasts of daylight and nightfall. You can recoil at change or be inspired by the unfolding process.

• Look for the lessons and the opportunities for growth. Within every disruption lies a seed of growth. For example, a life-threatening illness can prompt family members to relate deeply and lovingly toward one another.

• Choose your response. If you look at change with soft eyes of love and compassion, you can shift a perspective and respond in an accepting, loving way. Instead of cursing at the snow, you can rejoice at the miracle of white crystals tumbling from the sky. The choice is yours.

Create a wonderful day of change. Welcome Home!

Leonard

I’ve been working on personal growth and self-awareness most of my adult life. However, to bring that awareness into relationships often makes me, well, quite unconscious!

I know I’m unconscious when I think, “Surely it’s not me that’s causing the problems!” Unfortunately, it IS me that causes problems when I blame my partner and project my feelings onto her.

I could place my relational shortcomings onto Hollywood. After all, movies create the illusion that there is a perfect partner who will make me perfectly happy. And if I’m not happy, it means I’m not with the perfect partner.

In truth, it is up to us to be the perfect partners on the dance floor of love. True love requires that we change our perspective, alter our behavior, stretch our heart, express our needs, give of ourselves, and birth a relationship.

That requires being conscious and intentional. The benefits are many: emotional bond, heartfelt connection, deep healing, and personal transformation. So why don’t we step into those relationships with ease and comfort?

Many of us witnessed unconscious parents and took on their beliefs and behavioral patterns. To overcome our conditioning and become conscious, we must not only recognize our needs and desires but also the default patterns we adopt when feeling wounded or stressed.

Personally, when I feel hurt in a relationship, I tend to withdraw, judge and become self-sufficient – not the best way to stay connected to a partner. After I realize what I’m doing, I try to return to my vision of a loving relationship. I must then cultivate within myself the desired visional behaviors, thoughts and feelings rather than expect or demand that my partner change.

This may seem as easy as watching professionals dance the Tango. Getting on the dance floor with your partner is another matter.  Here are seven quick steps to prevent your feet from getting tangled.

1.    Identify your needs, wants and desires in a relationship.

2.    Notice how you feel emotionally and physically when your needs are satisfied.

3.    Examine your sensations and feelings when your needs are not met and name your reactive behavioral pattern. (Your partner will know!)

4.    Recognize what you don’t say to your partner and how you can say it lovingly.

5.    Imagine yourself expressing needs and desires to your partner in an open, undefended, loving way.

6.    Cultivate this loving vision in a safe, non-judgmental climate where you and your partner remain open, make requests, and lovingly satisfy them.

7.    Embrace gratitude and appreciation through affirming, loving acts and statements.

While romantic love is more about “Falling in love,” a conscious, intentional relationship is about “Rising toward love.”

We can then dance the Tango with unabashed passion!

Every New Year’s Eve I review my adventures from the previous year. As I reflected on the 2010 highlights, I immediately flashed to my sailing expedition on the high seas with Captain Bill.

This past August I was aboard a 40-foot sailboat on a 3-day trip around Catalina Island, a picturesque place off the coast of Southern California. My friends, Captain Bill and his first mate, Bev, had invited me for a voyage on a boat called, Knot Home.

The vessel’s name did not generate confidence as I much prefer being “at home” wherever I go. I believe home and inner peace is anywhere and everywhere, however, camping on a sailboat offered a rollicking challenge.

When we first set sail at midnight, Captain Bill programmed a Global Positioning System (GPS) to navigate the course. Finding an island in the dark is difficult but with the help of a GPS and my friend’s 15 years of sailing experience, we glided effortlessly out of the harbor into the vast ocean.

The voyage provided some harrowing moments especially when I staggered like a drunken sailor on a deck that rocked and rolled against high swells. “Shiver me timbers,” I mused, “There’s no place like Knot Home.”

Fortunately, my faith in the captain’s skill allowed me to enjoy the company, savor the beauty of the deep blue water, and gleefully watch the occasional dolphin swim alongside the bow.

Sailing was unpredictable and depended on wind conditions, water currents, and changing weather. Clearly, living on a sailboat for three days offered many lessons. I learned about the need to remain steadfast on a deck in constant motion. Most importantly, I recognized the value of setting a course with a proven navigational system.

Those lessons apply on land as well as at sea. With 2011 already upon us, we can set our destination for the upcoming year. Intentions help us focus on our destination. When we insert our intentions into our internal GPS, The Guiding Power of Spirit, we can relax and enjoy a journey with wonderful companions, beautiful scenery, and playful dolphins.

Even in the face of a storm, we need not worry for the Guiding Power of Spirit is ever-present. We merely have to restate our intentions, still our mind, and ask for our inner GPS to show the way.

As we clarify intentions and goals for 2011, we can take into consideration the following areas:

1.    Family and Relationships

2.    Finances and Career

3.    Physical and Emotional Health

4.    Personal and Spiritual Growth

5.    Social and Educational Goals

Once we identify our intentions and destinations, we can always ask for guidance on the journey, especially during stormy weather. There may be times when we rock and roll on the voyage but, if we remain steadfast and follow our GPS, we can sail in a vessel called, Welcome Home!

Ahoy! Leonard

In November I journeyed to Wisconsin to conduct a seminar on The Roadmap Home: Your GPS to Inner Peace. I had the good fortune of staying with my dear friends, Bill and Barb Motlong, who I’ve known for 40 years. As a therapist/photographer, Bill is collaborating with me on a new book which combines his beautiful pictures with inspirational sayings.

Like the birds on his farm, Bill rose early to take advantage of his house set in the farm belt of Wisconsin. When I arrived for breakfast, he announced that the day started off with glitches. Barb had a flat tire at the bottom of their winding driveway as she prepared to ferry a friend to hospital. Bill had to exchange cars with her and call triple A. I imagined this crimping our work time set aside for the book. Fortunately, the beautiful fall colors outside their picture windows brought me back to reality.

When a tree releases a leaf, everything is in perfect order. That realization punctured our illusions and helped us understand how our egos are the ones actually creating roadblocks. Our expectation that the day proceed a prescribed way prevented us from seeing the wonderful change of events, just like the change of seasons. So we decided to look for the mystical moments that would unfold as a result of a flat tire.

When Ron from AAA arrived, Bill decided to look for poignant signs during his encounter with this unexpected visitor. After the tire was replaced, Bill returned  to the house and announced that Ron did, indeed, have a simple, yet profound message. “You need a new tire.”

Bill and I laughed uproariously. Who were we to judge the way Spirit conveys messages or how the dominoes would fall over unexpected roadblocks.

So if you ever experience an obstruction, ask yourself, “Who is really creating the blockage?” Interruptions can puncture your views about what “should” occur and may provide opportunities to meet someone new, to connect on a deeper level, to gain penetrating insight, or to share a heartfelt experience.

In the process you may receive unexpected news that you need to replace something broken in your life, even if it’s a tire.

When faced with a roadblock, encounter it, embrace it, and evolve on the roadmap home.