About Kaleidoscopic Aha!

I have Aha! moments everyday. They are kaleidoscopic - always full of color, shapes, and different ideas constantly in motion. I tell stories, write Affirmative Prayers, and share insights from my years of Life Experiences. My subjects are about Art, Meditation, Animals and Nature, Spirituality, the Other Worlds, Intuitive Readings, Numerology, Oracle and Tarot Cards, Shapeshifting, and more stories.  Some are informational essays that give an understanding of the stories themselves.

"I promise Something for Everyone. If there is a subject important to you missing, email me and I'll see what I can do."

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Wrinkles are Magnificent

Wrinkles Are Magnificent by Katherine Ari, September 30, 2009

It’s still so unbelievable Michael Jackson died even though I feel I understand why. He hated aging – I hear that – but when you don’t get to the point of accepting where you are now and loving where you are, you just don’t live. The media does more to foster eating disorders and premature deaths than people realize. Aging gracefully – rather than beautifully – is the catch phrase. Wrinkles, age spots, gray hair or no hair, and weight redistribution are considered unattractive. Certainly, they are rather annoying. But an old tree or a huge old rock are magnificent because they have endured. The bigger the tree the older it is. It is honored. Why then can’t humans be honored for their ability to endure as they age rather than shunned and put down. Our priorities are mixed up. And as we age, we get caught up in the imbalance as well. We get discouraged and frustrated that our bodies, our faces, and abilities are not what they were when we were young. No one else seems to believe we have more now than in the past.


The old oak is stronger and gives more to the environment. We do too. We are the “rocks” of society. We have stories to tell. Our age characteristics are like the layers of bark on a tree or sediment on a rock. The whole of who we are and what we know lies inside. A tree or a big ancient rock has much to tell us if we listen. So too do the elder humans. But the trees stand in their place, quietly storing more layers, more stories, more history, more wisdom. If someone comes along and asks them, they will share – if the seeker listens with their heart. And we humans will share also. We know things. As my husband Doug Dannels said in a video about his sculptures of old people’s faces, “The wrinkles are marks of our experiences.” They are good things. They are beautiful.


If I were standing near MJ when he said aging sign were ugly, I would have taken him outside to my own garden. “Look at this oak tree and look at this small pecan seedling. Which is more beautiful, more magnificent, more important for the earth?” Would anyone choose the seedling? No, I think not. Everything in nature is connected. Everything has a season and increases in importance as age increases. Humans should become more valuable as they age – not less valuable.


I suppose a stag deer that lives beyond the normal age in the wild might be tough to eat. An observant hunter would see its maturity. He might still pull the trigger for the prize of the beauty of its antlers but not because the meat is desirable. But do we want to be eaten and mounted on someone’s wall as a trophy? If the buck has dropped his antlers and the hunter recognizes his age, he won’t shoot him even if it is still in hunting season – but most of the time when antlers have dropped it is NOT hunting season.


On the PBS series about the history of the National Parks, people came in and started cutting down the ancient Sequoias. Through the efforts of John Muir and others, they are protected. Signs of age in a tree, a giant rock, or a human are notices in big letters – Behold, mature age. Stop. Listen. They have so much to give and are beautiful. They are wise and contribute so much to the strength, stability, and health of the earth. Honor them. Respect them. Marvel at what they have endured and accomplished and be proud they have blessed you with their magnificent presence in your life!

Monday, September 28, 2009

Flood 2009 - in Douglasville, Ga, my home

I haven’t written on the blog for the past week or so. My mind and energy have been wrapped around the flood in my area last week. There is a lot to say readers and I encourage you to take some time to read the longer than usual post.

Today is September 28, 2009, one week after the floods that hit the Atlanta, Georgia area. The floods hit several areas but Douglas, Carroll, Paulding, and Western Cobb Counties were the locations where the most people died and homes were destroyed. I live in Douglas County. A man on the news said he was able to save his dogs but not his cats. He didn’t say whether he found them or just that he had no way to take them with him when he fled for safety. The background pictures of his mobile home and cars were covered in mud, which means the water covered his home, his belongings and probably his cats.

In 1991, a couple of tornadoes came through Douglasville – the county seat of Douglas County, west of Atlanta. Officially there was one recorded but I know that there were two that merged into one because my family we in the path. One went over the top of my house and the other at the back of my yard. We lost thirteen trees and one was a 200 year-old red oak tree. The tornado got down in the hollow of the old tree that was the home of the babies – baby birds, baby squirrels, baby chipmunks, and various insects. But the wonderful great-grandmother oak would not fall on the house. All the other trees went east, the directions of the tornadoes but she went north and wrapped herself around to the back of my house hitting only the roof of the kitchen.

When the final bills were in to the insurance company, we had almost $30,000 damage and $14,000 was that one tree. The tree specialists had to get her down to the ground because she was resting against another tree. One wrong move and she would have fallen toward the house and destroyed it and us. We also lost the majority of our monthly business and income but the insurance company for the business wouldn’t pay what we lost.

In the days following that natural disaster, we were confused and scared - and thankful. But we did not know how to deal with the people coming around and the contractors and insurance companies. Our next-door neighbor had had the same insurance for over 40 years and had never filed a claim. That insurance company was not going to pay for her roof to be replaced because there was some rotting on the trim boards and because the city required the roof to be brought up to code. She was an elderly lady and her adult children had to get attorneys and fight the company. The adjustors treated the woman rudely and just didn’t care.

Last year, our area had two really big hailstorms with grapefruit size hail. We called our insurance company and roofers in August. It took until May and three different roofing companies to get things worked out. Meanwhile, all those different people walking on the roof caused it to leak in places that it hadn’t leaked before. So that had to be fixed also. I am grateful to the company that eventually did the job because they went to the courthouse and city hall and went to bat for us to get the insurance company to do what needed to be done as well as comply with the historical society rules because our house is 120 years old and in the downtown historical district.

Are you asking now if we had damage during the flood? At this time we do not know of any structural damage. Business in the current economy was non-existent and the flood has not improved that situation. We have pressure washers, wet vacs and pumps and do yard clean up all the time. We are reducing our rates and making the contacts we can find to help people however we can. We have to prove we are local & will be here in the future.

But the real reason I am writing this is to address the emotions of being in a natural disaster. According to the predictions, it is just the beginning for the next 3 years. When the rain was coming down and falling and falling and not stopping, it was frightening. My dog is afraid to sit in her chair in the room by the door where she could see raging water running by the door while sheets of rain and thunder and lightning were happening. I had a cat outside and I had to stand outside for about an hour trying to get her to come out from under the cabana in my yard. It eased up a little and she peaked out the edge of the building when I grabbed her. She was so frightened. Today is the first day I have allowed her to go back outside.

It rained again on Saturday. I felt scared reminding myself, it is just rain. It is just rain. We lost our water for 2 days and when they got it back on, it wasn’t fit to drink or wash clothes in – well, they said we could wash clothes and after three days added we could wash clothes in hot water. They didn’t put that in the first messages.

They post to only hire local contractors but not to pay anyone up front. The first part is good because people from South Carolina and Alabama and other states are showing up – and they won’t be there after the work is done is they stay around to do the work. But that admonition not to pay anyone up front is really hard on honest small businesses. There have been problems with contractors taking the money and disappearing. But only big companies can afford to buy materials up front. Small companies in the current economy especially do not have the capital to buy things especially when the customer might not be honest. The customer may have no intentions of paying the contractor or perhaps their “damage” is not flood damage and they are taking advantage of the situation. The dishonest on either side hurt the ones – like during Katrina – that really need the help.

The local FEMA programs are doing everything they can to protect the ones who really lost and they need to protect the contractors as well. My husband had all sorts of anxieties about going to clean up the smelly messes and being taken advantage of after taking risk with his health and equipment.

It is all scary. Mother Nature can be fierce when things are out of balance. And you get scared. You don’t know whom you can trust but you have to trust. When the tornado hit, there were hundreds of houses damaged and destroyed. But things were different afterwards. We got a new roof over my kitchen and we needed that. A few years later, a tree that died because of the 200 year-old red oak tree had died. A big wind came through and broke off the trunk of the tree and landed it on our back porch. The washer and dryer were not damaged. We needed a new porch and used some of our own money to fix the foundation at the back of the house and build a patio with good drainage that pulled the rain water away from the back of the house and down hill to the front of the house. What we did because of that storm damage kept the flooding water from running inside the house this time and kept water away from the whole foundation at the back of the house which is low and on the ground – downhill from the entire back yard.

For anyone in a disaster such as a flood, hail, or a tornado, it hurts to lose your belongings and pets and homes and vehicles. But things will get better. Good will come from it. You must keep your faith strong. Know that the God in others is going to be there to help you. People will help. You must keep calm and let go of your anger, your pain, your fear, and let your understanding of God help you through the difficult time. Chaos always precedes growth. Find the good in your situation and what you can learn from it. If and when there is a next time, you will know how to keep your sense of humor, riding the waves if need be. Go to the Internet when you can and find what FEMA says to prepare for your pets for instance. Don’t try to drive through floodwaters. And maybe we all need to reduce our material possessions and spend less money on “things”. And there are basic things such as what to look for when you buy or rent a new house. Many of the places that went under water should never have been built in those areas. But that doesn’t take away the feelings you have about the things you lost. I know myself that it hurts. I have been there. I also know that the longer you dwell on the pain, that the longer you will feel the pain. When you start to look for the ways you can grow forward, you are making a choice to live in the now and let go of the pain. You will heal much faster and find some really wonderful things in your life ahead. I know this is true. I have been through it and looking forward to the new part of my life.

My children, now all grown, went through the tornado also. I know how scary it can be for them. I can help and if you find yourself or someone you know in the aftermath of a natural disaster, refer them to me. I want to assist others. I don’t have a lot of money but I have a big heart and I will share.

Katherine Ari.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Mistakes and Moving Forward

MISTAKES and Moving Forward


Everyone makes mistakes. That is called being human. Many things others do are regarded as mistakes when there is just lack of understanding. Unless any of us are as famous as Michael Jackson, no one can know what his life was like. I remember a person once that told my parents all sorts of things about me that were nonsense because the person did not understand what we were doing.


People read things that are assumptions by a reporter in the newspapers or magazines and then gossip about what they read – not knowing the whole story and what really happened. They tell others and they tell others and each time the story is repeated, it changes – we all like to tell a good story. Do we all remember playing the game of Gossip when we were kids? The end story was always different .


The story may have been years ago but these talkers keep talking about what they think they know wanting to sound important not thinking how their words are hurting others and in turn hurting them. But these are mistakes also and we all make mistakes.


I think about some times when I lost it, or had a meltdown. I don’t like myself very much for being so over the top. Of course, in a heated argument we justify our behaviors and say that the unkind things we said or did were justified or provoked. But is it ever okay to spew hurtful words or do anything to invade the space of another being? [It doesn’t have to be another person as it could be a pet or even a plant.]


We are tired or stressed out. We don’t think clearly and do something unkind or inconsiderate. Sometimes, the act is so bad that the consequences are major, even life changing. But life goes on and one has to move on. It isn’t easy to forgive yourself and then there are those pesky gossips that just won’t let it be in the past. I want to yell at them – let the PAST go people – see me or see us as we are now and see how much I have changed. I know I have grown. I know what I did wrong and I am committed to not repeating those errors again. But if I bring up the past trying to get them to let it go, then I am guilty of living in the past. I am whole, perfect, and complete and I live in the now with love. I learned from my mistakes and grow. Today I am loving and kind and artistic. I move on!

Friday, September 11, 2009

Look at the One in the Mirror and Make a Change

It's 9-11-09, eight years after the terrorist attacks on New York. So much has happened since then. It was so surreal and you kept asking "Is this really happening? It just can't be real, but it is real. And what's going to happen next?"

We mourned. We came together and helped each other. And many, many good things have happened since then as well as many not so good. Many changes have come about because of it but it wasn't necessary to kill innocent people to bring about those changes. But people still don't get it.

Hatred never is necessary, but yet people still choose to hate, to be intolerant, to hold on to bigotry, racism and judgments, to work for separatism, to destroy, to act like they can tell others what to believe, what to listen to, who to love. But it is not just the "other" places. It is just as prevalent here in this country - in some cases more so. Can't they see that the very hatred they are angry about is their own hatred reflected back to them?

One of the Michael Jackson songs I continue to hear is the "Man in the Mirror". The best way to make a change is to change yourself. I personally like President Obama and I think he really is sincere. The medical system needs change and I ask readers, what are you doing to make the change? Fighting these new ideas is not helping unless you can suggest something better.

What are you doing to make the change about hatred and intolerance? Are you still being judgmental about people being judgmental? Am I? Are you giving love and respect because you want to be loved and respected or are you expecting it without giving it out? Do we stop anymore 9-1-1 attacks by war and more hatred or do we stop them before they happen by opening our eyes and making changes inside?

I hear people on Facebook looking for every reason they can to put our President down. I guess I was guilty of that with President Bush as I did not like his politics. (Although I would NEVER have been disrespectful if I had met him. He WAS the President of the United States, an honor.) These people who find loopholes in the health care ideas are the very ones that have suffered many health problems because the health care was not adequate for their problems.

I think of it like unions. There were these big companies that followed big plantation owners that got big and powerful by using/abusing the laborers. The unions came into power to protect the laborers. Then the power structure swung the other way. The unions became corrupt and too powerful. Either way, the government has had to step in. On the plantations, slave labor was wrong and eventually the society and the government stopped it - for then.

Big corporations and big medicine and big pharmaceutical companies have been making their money and the individual has suffered. The government is having to stop the Bernie Madoff's and the insurance companies but they aren't attacking the drug companies. Some effort to stop the current cheap labor also known as slave labor is coming around in the effort to stop illegal aliens from taking away the jobs of natural born Americans - but the real issue is SLAVE labor! But the media isn't saying let's stop slave labor because the politicians and lawyers and people with money like their cheap - slave - labor. They defend their rights to only want to pay a grown man $60 a day for hard work when they are getting $250/hour or more.

We are spending over $18,000 a year for insurance. The deductible is very high. Benefits have been reduced because our children are not in college and over the age limits. And we are healthy and spend less than $200 a year on health matters. But we have to keep the insurance because we might have an emergency even though we don't go to the doctor because we can't afford it because of the high deductible.

The corporations and high medical care have gotten us into these problems because of their greed. The government is stepping in to try to help the whole of society. You can label it socialized medicine or attack it because you are a Republican or a downright bigot. Maybe you talk a liberal talk but just plain walk a path of intolerance and fixed ideas you don't want to change. Your life is unhappy and unhealthy but you don't want to let that Black president come up with a new idea. It doesn't matter. You and I are all entitled to our own opinions.

But then that is a big part of why 9-1-1 happened. We ARE allowed to have our own opinions. We have so much to be grateful for. We have the government that will step in and try to do what it takes to protect the people of this wonderful country rather than continue to allow the government to suppress, control, and deny individuals their right of birth to choose and control their own destinies. We have all heard that, "You can't fight city hall - they make the rules and only they can change them." Well, that is the bottom line. City hall or the government itself is the only way that the government can change BUT we do have the way to get the government to make it change itself. It is NOT by hatred, more judgments, narrow-mindedness, and terrorist attacks. It is not by disrespectful behaviors liking screaming out at President Obama or teaching our children that is it okay to be rude to the President of the United States. It is not by telling more lies and undermining all attempts to make some changes by manipulating the media and the American public.

I'm looking at the one in the mirror. If you want to make a difference, look at the man in the mirror and make a change in what you see. Thank you, Michael, for reminding me what I NEED to DO.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Announcement

Katherine Ari, Wise Woman Guide is

OPEN FOR BUSINESS Monday September 7, 2009

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Story - I sit under my trees and Attract others to Me

Many years ago, over ten in fact, I had a meeting with an elder named Grandfather Jerome. He would go into his kind of meditation or trance burning the sacred herbs and then tell his visitor what his inner voice told him to say about the person. Grandfather said, "I never do anything to get people to come to me. I just sit under a tree and they come." That was the message.

I have said to many that I have the tree and I am sitting under it. When are THEY going to come?
When am I going to get followers and supporters of the blog? When am I going to see people in my garden office where I can share my love, energy, talents, knowledge, and experiences to help people realize what is inside of them and how to manifest it in their lives?

A couple of weeks ago I did the Aura Feel Good Day at Inner Space in Atlanta. I was pleased and saw several people. The day is set up for the Healers to see people for 15 or 20 minutes and in that short time I found the most effective way to show them my work was to use Soul Cards by Deborah Koff-Chapin. Soul Cards do not have any set story or meaning. The picture drawn has YOUR story and interpretation. I felt really good about using them. The short time was enough but longer time is even better.

I came home and after resting from the big day, I did my own cards - a past, the present and the future. My present had me sitting petting a small lizard like dragon. The future card had me releasing a person like dragon through my words - releasing the fire dragon of creation from me and for anyone who comes to me. I am ready for the future card. I have petted the dragon within my "cave" long enough. It IS ready to be released into fruition.

This morning I asked What Do I do Next and again pulled out the cards? How do I bring people to me and make income? I asked for two cards. One card pulled me to pick it first. I turned it over and there she - I was sitting under that tree with a Higher self face coming from my hand reaching out to many hands in the tree (of Life?). It is amazing - there is the same image of me sitting under the tree helping others.

But one of the things I realized as I pondered this message is that I have always turned to the oaks in my garden but have somewhat ignored the other trees and shrubs. Outside my office door is a Grandfather Elm, several sweet gums, a pine, a red bud at the foot of the elm, cherries, azalias, honeysuckle, Nandina or heavenly bamboo, maples, and a palm tree.

I take the messages from ALL the trees. I sit under them especially the elm with my hands open and the next card is a beautiful woman - light being or angel - giving out wonderful, loving, healing energy, a picture of who I want to be and who I am. I love what I can do and I want to share it with others.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Do You Need a Guru to straighten out your LIFE?

Today's subject - When to look for a teacher or guru.
Throughout our lives we are learning. We are gathering facts and if we are awake, we take those facts and experiences and integrate them into who we are - a compilation of those events, beliefs, ideas, and situations. Sometimes it is appropriate to find a teacher, someone who has gone before us or studied more than us willing to share their knowledge so that we don't have to re-experience everything. Teachers are good when from their heart they share their life experiences just because they want to. They sometimes can put into words things we know but can't express.

Now I am definitely not one of those people that believe that if someone is spiritual that they shouldn't get paid for what they are good at. Spiritual people do their best work when they can stay in the spiritual place all of the time but they have to pay bills and eat just like the average person that is just bringing home a paycheck - or not. And spiritual people can live comfortably and still be loving and real and "Spiritual". They don't have to be paupers!

The issue I have is the "teacher" or "guru" that doesn't do anything without an agenda. I'll help you if you promise to follow me, pay me this amount of money, be in my circle and do as I say.
The guru pulls in the person looking for new lessons and experiences and convinces them that they can't do anything for themselves unless they follow the guru's instructions. They tell the followers that there is only one way to do things and it is theirs. And if the participant questions the instructions, the guru and other members guilt this person who dares to question with all sorts of mind trips. This vulnerable, insecure person doesn't believe in their own abilities and this person takes advantage of it and convinces them they NEED to follow this group.

If your body says to eat, the guru or leader says no, you can't eat until I say so. No, you must do exactly what I say when I say it and by the way, have you paid your money so that I can fly back and forth across the country chasing women, I mean to do my work? How many such groups have women with money that are attractive but don't have any self-confidence?

There are all sorts of people doing sweat lodges. And I hear, "my leader has helped me so much!" It isn't the leader that helps you. It is what you find inside yourself when you enter the sweat lodge BECAUSE it is in YOU. And any water pourer that wants you to praise him or her for what a great lodge they did is on a major ego trip. If they are really letting spirit run the show, then the experience you have is between you and your understanding of God.

I heard recently how on some reservations when someone from the outside comes that the leaders make special effort to torture the outsiders. That is not what the sweat lodge is for. It is for cleansing and making contact with the higher power. If you need to purge some crap, it is not for the water pourer to decide. He/She is just there to pour water and do what spirit says.

I had a dream last night where this leader, a former person I associated with, was really determined in the dream to make it hard on me. He didn't like it that the first part of the "journey" did not give me any trouble. So he was going to make it harder for me to do the next part of the "test". I was further told that I couldn't eat until he said so by the others in the group. And then I woke up. I find that pretty profound. I WOKE UP!

It is my sincere goal to work with people to help them find their inner guru, their inner teacher to help them as they WAKE UP. I am not the final know all. I don't want to be. I don't want to take responsibility for your life. I want you to find it inside you - it is guaranteed at birth. You have the knowledge inside you to find your own way. I am just a guide, a helper, one who has traveled down the road at my own pace and found the beautiful clear lake at the end of the walk. I decide whether to jump in and when. I share love, experience, enthusiasm, energy. If my inner guide tells me to pick up oracle cards or pick up an animal book, it isn't for my benefit or glory. It is for the person seeking some answers, some direction. It isn't for me to judge or control.

I need income just like anyone else. A wise therapist told me once that most of the people that come in to her office she can "fix" in one session. And she did, but it didn't keep her in business. But she just couldn't keep people coming back just to pay her bills. In management organizations, they spend a lot of time teaching you how to get customers to come back over and over. So the full time guru is doing the same thing - keep people coming back to keep steady income. It is capitalism. I understand all of that. There just has to be a better way! I mean, is capitalism working for us these days in the current economy?

Seek your teachers who share knowledge, but be careful not to become dependent on them. If they foster that pattern, they may not be sincere. If you find a spiritual center that makes you happy, make it about the teachings - not the preacher/minister. I love this well liked spiritual lady in Atlanta who answers the doctor that tells her things she doesn't want to hear, "That isn't my truth." Know your own truth. KNOW YOUR OWN TRUTH!

Katherine Ari