ToNT.oRg APRIL 2020:
​"self-reflection" 

Think great things about you,
for those are what's True & 
To others be Kind, 
then you will find
As Within, so Without
​And what was lost is now Found.

Fun Auntie Tyan video below 

Thing 1 & 2 and the Cat in the Hat always cleaned up the mess they made -- and you will have to clean up any messes you make, too! But, be glad!  
This is a gift bc as we fix we grow so we can create beauty over chaos and choose love over fear.  

"Master of Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!"
This week it's all about adaptability.

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything." - George Bernard Shaw

cuttlefishes' legendary adaptability is a greater strength than strength itself.  ​

Having experienced cuttlefish from an epicurean standpoint since childhood, what a happy surprise it was to find out how quirky they are; both funny and intelligent (traits usually keeping company — have you noticed?).  There’s always exceptions to the rule in life and, in the oceans, cuttlefish are a rare and delightful type of occupant.  They’re not found in the Americas, but leave it to the West to discover how smart they are and, bizarrely adorable, too!  

Their sizable brains evolved (they’ve no hard shell for protection) ensuring propagation of the species, but, they are by no means dull!   Cuttlefish are spellbinding — literally.  Big-time entertainers, they treat more challenging prey to impressions of hovering 3-pronged spaceships, while simultaneously projecting a dazzling light show from their skin rivaling a Vegas marquee.  Hypnotized by the undulating looming spectacle, the victim crab or lobster is paralyzed (with awe?) and the flashy fish strikes — dinner and a show!

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Cuttlefish have remarkable skin -- to say the least.  It can alter to match surroundings of all colors, stripes, and textures -- a hyper-camouflage.  One cuttlefish named, Bubbles (permanent guest of some venerated research institution of higher learning), was housed in a tank with a checkerboard patterned floor and her skin created a black square on its back to match (a decorator’s dream pet)!  For all of the hoopla about standing out in the world, sometimes we forget how nice it is to fit in -- and artfully at that: there are times for both.

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During mating season, cuttlefish let it all hang out, not even bothering to blend in.  En masse males preen, competing in full splendor, puffing and wrestling to prove their genetic worth.  Females are choosy and generally unimpressed by such displays.  This might leave Darwinists confused, but, here’s where the fun part comes in:  Cuttlefish might be a brainy bunch -- but some are more clever than others -- while the big boys are busy flexing, the less physically endowed males show off their mental assets...

​...The real “players” utilize their gifts to glide by the others, while appearing non-threatening and therefore much more welcomed by the ladies.  These boys dress in drag.  The smaller males make their skin appear like the females’ and slip by undetected, often, ahem, ‘accepted’ and departing without ever being noticed.  They are 30% more likely to pass their genes along to the next generation than the traditionalists who don’t let their “freak flag fly.”   What a terrific reminder that survival of the fittest also means the smartest.

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People can resent limitation, but take a lesson from the cuttlefish:  When it isn’t easy you get creative.  Often the most innovative and compelling great works are born of necessity.  Embrace what IS available to you and a whole realm of possibility emerges more effective than if all your dreams were granted and everything handed to you at once!  Propellant moxie goes much further than mere resources alone.  Focusing on what's missing is misplaced energy, for - sometimes the best prayers are unanswered ones - especially when we find out what we’re made of and triumph in the process.
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Now, go forth, take some cues from the cuttlefish, & LIGHT IT UP!!!
​xoxo-Auntie Tyan

Be a little teapot!

Pick one thing you're ashamed of, or feel bitter or regretful towards & make sure it's something with a strong negative feeling attached.  This week, every time you think of it, pick words like, "Grateful, Thank you, or Blessed," to say instead.  Think the opposite of the negative feeling; a word that immediately makes you feel better.  Say it in your mind every time you think of your issue.  (Eventually the word will lose it's magic, and that's when you choose another word.)  After some time the negative feeling will completely dissipate because you have done what you need to BALANCE YOURSELF OUT.  Note: you are changing your feeling attached to a memory, not the memory.  That way you get to grow, but you're no longer stuck!

• It should be a word you've chosen that has a real effect on you.
• You know you best, so trust yourself enough to pick what works.
• It should release pressure every time you think of this word.

Imagine a teapot boiling, and steam coming out the spout, that's how it should feel.  You really are a little teapot!  

Be a parent to yourself & have a sweet time!

Pick an aspect of your life you'd like to change and improve.   

1. Start by making the activity a reward, not a punishment.  
2. Make it fun.
3. Keep visualizing the change complete in your mind, not the result, but the habit and feeling that create the result.    
4. Be supportive & patient.  

It's like riding a bike for the first time, but, instead of having your father behind you to make sure you don't fall, you'll be behind you, supporting yourself to make changes, however small.  Then congratulate yourself & do it again!  Real change takes effort & time!

Be a cuttlefish Jedi like this Yoda!

Be a real Yogi and practice flexibility of the mind.  Spend the week honing your skills of adaptability.  What does that mean?  It means responding to everything in a laid back fashion.  Rolling with things also keeps you young because all that resistance is friction that wears away at you.  

• Start by not allowing negativity to build up in the first place.  Use the "little teapot" technique and make sure to nip any growing negativity in the bud immediately.
• Enjoy the change by participating.  When we observe we can behave according to the moment and have a richer experience because we are interacting with life, not imposing our ideas on it.
• Don't be afraid to use your intelligence.  Cuttlefish are smart critters but you, as a human being, are a lot smarter (one hopes).  Use that big brain to make yourself happier, not just to impress.  You have to choose which one b/c the two goals are generally incompatible, one often counteracting the another.

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When we condemn others or our past we hold ourselves back. Freedom is letting the loving you through.