So, you know that place deep inside that feels all gushy when you think of all the things you’ve really got going on in your life…..yeah, that’s gratitude and it’s contagious….

Check out this video called, “The Gratitude Dance.” It’ll totally put a smile on your face….

Let’s honor gratitude a little more here…

Gratefulness.org is one of my favorite websites….You can light a candle in cyberspace and send it out to the world.

So, I subscribe to a free daily service “Grateful Word of the Day” at Gratefulness.org and I read it (it comes to my inbox) every morning. It’s simple, (takes about 2 seconds) and gently guides me to focus on what I am truly grateful for….It totally sets the tone of my day…Hmmm….deep breath here….I highly recommend it.

Here are a few of my favorite grateful words of the day:

“The secret to prosperity is wanting what you have, not having what you want.” —anonymous

This always reminds me to focus on all the greatness present in my life already here!

“Be content to progress in slow steps until you have legs to run and wings with which to fly. –Padre Pio

This quote reminds me that it’s really ok to move slowly on some days….I don’t always have to accomplish a million things to see value in my day.

“The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little.” — Jon Kabat-Zinn

This totally reminds me to appreciate those connections with others, even if it is smiling at a stranger on the street.

I love you Gratitude. You an eco-chic God. May you continue to penetrate our hearts and help us heal the planet…

Empowering all women…No baby, we are never going back…..

Ok, listen up all you Goddesses out there…Let’s support our right to choose! It’s getting harder to have an abortion these days and guess what? It’s affecting our poorest sisters the most…Read on!

Remember in 2006 when South Dakota Republican Gov. Mike Rounds signed a bill that banned nearly all abortions in the state…I don’t think so…that was in direct conflict with the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade 1973 decision that legalized abortion.

Happily, shortly therefore, voters in the state overturned that decision….Thank-you!

NOW (National Organization of Women) supporting Roe vs. Wade

Ok so first the good news. Abortion is still legal and most women who have the money can get access. We love that.

The not so good news and where we need to pay attention….

Our poorest of poor including women living in South Dakota (which has one of the lowest wages in the nation) do NOT have easy access to abortion, nor can they afford it. The state has just one abortion provider, in Sioux Falls, who is open one day a week….Yeah, you heard me right, the clinic is only open one day a week!

That’s not good brothers and sisters! We gotta change this….Keep going…

Ever heard of the Hyde Amendment? Ok, this is one reason to vote Democratic this year and a way to help! (and I’m talking to myself too…)

All the Dem candidates are in favor of reversing the Amendment, which bars the Medicaid program from funding abortions for low-income women…No way baby, no more…

Here are more details as reported by World Changing…

“Over the years, the Hyde Amendment, which dates from 1976, has included exceptions in cases of rape, incest, and threats to the life or physical health of the woman; the current version does not include the physical health exemption. States are allowed to provide their own funds to pay for poor women’s abortions, but only a handful do so; elsewhere, poor women must scrape together funds that would otherwise have paid for food, clothing, or rent.”

Ok, so with a Democratic leadership, we can change this…Here’s more good news….

More from World Changing:

“Since the 1980s, a growing number of nonprofit abortion providers and women’s health funds have emerged to fill the care and funding gap. There are so many abortion funds, in fact, that they’ve organized as the National Network of Abortion Funds, providing access to monetary and other assistance in 42 of the 50 states.”

Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!

“The Chicago Abortion Fund is one of the oldest and largest such funds. Last year, the fund gave out grants totaling more than $50,000 to 159 women, and is planning to distribute $63,000 in 2008.” World Changing

Ok, here’s another way we can help.

Let’s start supporting these groups. Right now, for example, the South Dakota Women’s Health Fund needs some serious love! They provide funds to help pay for abortions, as well as transportation, housing, and child care and they need donations. Click here for more info. Hats off to New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and many other states who have similar programs.

Final note: Equality and freedom of choice are incredibly eco-chic…Let’s keep it going!

Design Green Alliance is a creative co-op of furniture manufacturers.

Ok, so it’s obvious right? Green everything is seriously growing….and I’m diggin’ it. Seems like everyone I know is somehow incorporating sustainable practices into their personal and professional lives.

Yes, my love, please keep it coming…

I happened to see a great post recently at Furniture World Online. An alliance of green manufactures just launched Design Green Alliance — An membership based organization of companies in the home furnishings industry, working together to advance the cause of sustainability.

What does that mean exactly?

I’ll let Tim Loveday, founder of the organization speak first:

“The Design Green Alliance serves as a united front for sustainable manufacturers looking to increase their presence in the marketplace. The message of sustainability and environmental stewardship has never been more important, and by working together, we can make a difference in the furniture industry and in the world.

So, you know those ginormous trade shows (not open to the public) where your retails store owners go and purchase lots of goodies for you?…and yes we want them to be earth friendly….

Well, now with organizations like DGA, green/sustainable companies will continue to have their own section of the show, with a much higher visual presence. DGA, for example, purchases larger amounts of space for its members, therefore increasing its visibility and right now, membership is free. For more details click here.

There is something to be said about being part of group with a common cause….That can be a significantly louder voice than going at it alone…..May this eco-voice continue to get louder…

Baby ducks and other marine life will benefit from China’s recent ban on (ultra-thin) plastic bag manufacturing. Oh, sweet babies, aren’t they adorable?

Ok, this bit of positive eco-news really rocked my world!

China took a giant leap last week and launched a surprise crackdown on plastic bags, “banning production of ultra-thin bags and forbidding its supermarkets and shops from handing out free carriers.”Source is Reuters UK

Rock on China!

Oh Chinese plastic bags, no more….starting June 1st.

The following notice was posted on the Chinese central government Web site www.gov.cn:

“Our country consumes huge amounts of plastic bags every year. While providing convenience to consumers, they have also caused serious pollution, and waste of energy and resources, because of excessive use and inadequate recycling.”

That and a bunch of other really nasty environmental hazards including harming marine life. I won’t get into the details. Let’s stay in this happy place for a moment. Eco-baby, it’s time to celebrate!

Gifts of Compassion, which range from $50 to $130 and come wrapped in a vintage-silk-sari envelope…Aren’t they beautiful?

Ok, so I don’t about you….but, for me, when I feel like giving to a charitable organization, I often don’t know where to turn. There are simply so many amazing, wonderful people and organizations that are truly making a difference in the world….Goddess bless them all…

So I was reading PlanetGreen the other day and my eye stopped on these personalized gift certificates, called Gifts of Compassion, available for purchase online at ABC Home & Planet Foundation.

Basically here’s the idea….

You can buy a donation which range from $50 to $130 and come wrapped in these fabulous vintage silk sari envelopes, and are divided into five categories: Creating Home, Planet Protection, Empowerment, Healing, and Animal Compassion. There are 25 organizations to choose from…that’s a good amount, right? and include Green Belt Movement International, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Rainforest Alliance.

Here’s my favorite part as stated on PlanetGreen, “Your donation goes toward the specific purpose indicated, and not for organizational overhead.”

We love that!

A $130 gift to Chetna Organic, to name one example, will provide a cow to a resource-poor organic-cotton farmer, in the Asifabad region of Andhra Pradesh, India, to help him cultivate the soil. A $100 gift to ForestEthics, which works to protect the mountain caribou of British Columbia in Canada, will support indigenous First Nations community members to care for female caribou while they are pregnant, as well as guard the new calves. ::ABC Home & Planet

We love strategic alliances united in supporting global healing…May it continue!

This card just dropped into my life….

Ok, so I was making my bed this morning….nothing out of the ordinary…kitties around….when I suddenly see this random card (as pictured above), entitled, “How To Build Community“….Ok, so I’ve never seen it before and I don’t know where it came from.

What I do know is this…..I was meant to read it and so I began to explore….

After some research…..Goddess bless the Internet…I found out the artist of the poster (also available in card size) is Syracuse, New York artist Karen Kerney who is also the Art Director of SCW or (syracuseculturalworkers) and the text was created by members of SCW.

Oh heavenly joy….I loved what I found out about these guys….Read on…

I just ordered this poster….I love it! Click here for more info.

Who is the SCW Community?……As stated on their website,

“Syracuse Cultural Workers (SCW) is a peace and justice publisher founded in 1982. We create and publish visual materials, like calendars, posters, and cards, that are feminist, lesbian/gay allied, racially inclusive, and honor elders and children.”

“Our mission is to help create a culture that honors diversity and celebrates community; that inspires and nurtures justice, equality and freedom; that respects our fragile Earth and all its beings; that encourages and supports all forms of creative expression.”

Beautiful Love….Ok, so back to the “How To Build Community List.” Here’s the message that I got. Open your heart and follow some of these suggestions….Just do it—you’ll be happy you did…

Here are my top 7…For the complete list, click here.

1- Turn off your tv….

2-Leave your house…

3-Share what you have…

4- Pick up litter

5- Help a lost dog…

6- Dance in the street…

7- Fix it even if you didn’t break it….

We love you SCW….