I've been enjoying being alive this past month, as new situations have brought me new understandings about myself and my life. Seems as if the colours of autumn were talking to me about an increased beauty in life through the different shades.

I have also been spending time with my sister-in-law and mother-in-law, who were in London visiting for two weeks. I had a wonderful time with them, guiding them through the British Museum, talking, walking about London, and even travelling with them to meet other relatives.

And in between I have decided to take a big leap on a project that I was starting to create: it is a guide on overcoming procrastination and getting things done that I thought of publishing on the 8th of January... but due to a number of reasons I have decided to publish it on November 11. Which is just less than a month away ;-)

Needless to say I've been working on it as much as possible, as I have a lot of material that I want to explain and I want it to be of the best quality. If procrastination is a problem for you, then keep an eye on your inbox, because you will have the opportunity to benefit from a discount on my book :-)

As a result, I have pushed aside temporarily the uploading of the new version of my book "From Conflict To Calm", as it involves not only just uploading it but doing some admin work around it too. For the moment, the guide on overcoming procrastination that I'm working on is my priority.

Wishing you smooth sailing through the month of October!

Evolving and growing in life means that we're bound to have our mental patterns challenged and falling at times - just because they need to be replaced by new, better-adjusted mental patterns.

Our mental patterns usually change when we experience an actual physical change of some sort. It may be losing your job, a relationship break-up, having an accident, the death of a relative or a friend - a change which has important consequences in your life.

Even though the grass on the other side of the fall is actually greener, you've got to go through the fall first. And we generally don't find the fall all that pleasant.

The fall involves having a lack of 'mental support' for a while. It means that for some time the old patterns of thought don't work for the new situation, and at the same time you don't have a new pattern of thought that makes sense of the new situation yet.

The first times I was conscious that I was going through a change of mental patterns I found it very scary. I felt helpless and vulnerable, and all I wanted to do was to escape from it all. I wanted to wake up to a life that made sense to me under my old thoughts.

Now if you've ever been resistant to the fall, you know that no matter how much you try to escape it it won't go away. It will be there for you to experience whenever you stop escaping. So eventually you accept the fall.

And here is the key, here is when you're out of the fall altogether. The moment you accept the fall is when you start finding the light, when new thoughts come to you which make you look at life differently. You may have a glimpse of hope or joy; you may have the intuition that you actually like and prefer this scenario over what you had before, and that the fall was necessary.

I found it so ironic so many times that the stage of falling and uncertainty ended the moment I made peace with it and accepted to experience it.

One of the lessons that I take home from my falls is that the more acceptant I am of how life comes, the smoother the fall, if indeed a fall does occur. I have experienced situations in which my full acceptance of life as it came brought me rewards, instead of a fall as I would have had if I had resisted.

What I want to share with you today is the thought of releasing resistance as much as you can. When you stop putting a brake on how life comes, you find yourself navigating effortlessly through it.

Every month I receive emails from readers - some of them contain questions or comments, and some of them are contributions, such as a positive story, an article or a tip.

This month Larry, from Uxbridge, US, shared this beautiful piece of gratitude focused on the Now:

Thanks, Larry! :-)

This month I want to share with you a beautiful song that I came across a little while ago and that I find uplifting every time I listen to it: I don't quite know its name, but it's a beautiful piece from Manose Singh.

You only need to give it a listen - I'm sure it will elevate you ;-)

I believe that being grateful for something is one of the most powerful tools to feel better immediately. Here are the two thanking bits of the month:

Thankful for... garlic. I seriously love garlic. We have a box of organic fruits and vegetables delivered at home every week, and it also contains one garlic bulb - flavoursome! I love it baked in its shell or fried - plus did you know that garlic also helps to keep a strong immune system? Perfect for winter!

Thankful for... the colours of autumn. I so enjoy the variety of colours that autumn brings; so much so that I'm planning to create some sort of photo album of the different shades I find. Hurray for the oranges, yellows, browns! :-)

What are you thankful for? Share your gratitude on this page and read what others are thankful for!

Care to send me your thoughts about this issue's topics? Email me and let me know!

If you enjoyed this newsletter, please pass it along to your friends, family and colleagues, or send them to the Dare To Play It Big sign up page. I thank you in advance.

Stay well,

Cristina

P.S. Feeling stressed and worried because of problems at work? Then check my handbook "From Conflict To Calm" - based on my own experience with conflict with my boss, my handbook gives you the keys to move from a powerless situation to one of peace. Find out more about how "From Conflict To Calm" can help you!