Love Heals

Love’s ointment works on bruised knees as well as broken dreams. Love has the power to heal all conditions of the body and mind. Love’s glow melts its seeming opponents into pure light. Where love is, all is well.

Love is at the centre of every miraculous healing. It lifts the spirit of the bereaved. It penetrates the darkest hallway to reveal the next step. There is no loss, pain, or betrayal that love cannot illuminate. There is no sadness that love cannot soothe.

Always Enough: Sometimes it seems that love is the problem. It can appear that love caused the pain. People we love reject us, or they die, or they become so important to us that we encounter endless types of hurt. It seems that love is scarce and can be taken away at the whim of the beloved. This illusion of the scarcity of love comes closer to describing the cause of the pain. It is the sense of lack that hurts, not the love. The lack is an illusion.

There is always enough love. It is behind every great creation. Love is the canvas that holds up the paint. Love is the page that hosts the words. Love is the day you live into. It is every background, hidden behind every story, colored by every circumstance. Underneath every experience there is a field of love upon which that moment was built. There is always enough love. We simply must find it.

Finding Love: Finding love is different from finding your keys or your eyeglasses when they disappear. And yet, we tend to think of it in the same way. We think love is hiding somewhere. We left it with that person or in that old town or in that dear friend. We tend to think love is located in the person we love and when we lose that person we have lost love. Love is very different from that. Love lives in every moment in every particle of existence. Finding love is more like looking through the paint to the canvas, looking through the situation to the essence.

Try This: Here is an exercise for accessing love regardless of conditions. In order to reap the full benefit from this exercise, first take a moment to look around you at the condition of your life. Notice what kind of presence love occupies in your awareness. Take a neutral glance at your entire situation as if through a wide-angle lens. Without judging or defending, free from praise or blame, simply appreciate the contrasting landscape of your incarnation.

Once you have perused your lifescape, close your eyes and gently settle your awareness on your heart centre right in the middle of your chest. Allow your breathing to become soft and relaxed. With each breath imagine your heart center infused with the gentle presence of love. Imagine this love soothing all hurts, filling all spaces of loss, and brightening all gloom. As the light of love becomes more established in you, realize that this love is always there. It is intrinsic to your nature. It is native to your being. You don’t have to put it there or develop it. It is the canvas of your life. Love is what you are made of.

Expand your awareness to include your whole body and an egg-shaped energy field all around you. Let love’s quiet presence ease into your awareness, permeating your entire field. With each gentle breath, allow yourself to become so soft and peaceful that the love that resides within you can shine through your situation and your thoughts, through your pains and your losses. Become so quiet that you can sense the slightest presence of this beautiful love as it glows through your physical body.

You may want to regularly spend some time revealing the love that you are in this type of meditative process. The benefits of this practice may surprise you. Love heals a scraped elbow as well as a broken heart. And it does something more. It attracts more love.

By Rebbie Straubing

Beautiful Women

My Beautiful Body

Six steps to a sexy bedroom

1. Clean up your act

Get rid of all the junk that accumulates in your bedroom. Don't use it as a dumping ground for kids' art projects, laundry, newspapers and magazines. No one feels sexy going to bed in a warehouse. First get everything up off the floor, store the things that warrant it and trash the things that don't. Clear of the surfaces of chests and tables, and only replace what is meaningful or pretty.

You don't want to see anything that reminds you of chores or obligations. Everything your eye lands on should make you feel relaxed and confident.

2. Can the can lights

Overheard lighting is notoriously unflattering. There's nothing sexy about a well-lit room. You want shadows, highlights and the soft glow of filtered light. Place a pair of lamps with ivory shades on each side of your bed, and make sure the bulbs are no more than 60 watts.

For even more impact, replace the white bulbs with pink tinted bulbs. Everybody looks good in this light -- the only thing more flattering is candlelight, and pink light bulbs don't pose a fire hazard.

3. Scents and sensibility

Take the same approach to smell that you took to sight. Get rid of anything that doesn't smell great. Remove the laundry hamper to a bathroom or closet. Evict the dog, just for one night. Wash everything, down to the mattress pad in good detergent. And make up your bed with the sheets folded back the sheets invitingly, the way they do in fine hotels.

Choose a scented candle with care. One that's too floral will be off-putting to a man. A better bet is one that smells fresh and clean, like Jo Malone's Grapefruit candle. The flicker of candlelight will enhance your sexy lighting scheme.

4. Soundtrack

The "Law & Order" theme song is not sexy music. Turn off the television! Better yet, banish it from the bedroom. The bedroom should be for two things only: sleep and sex. Install a small stereo in your bedroom and play your favorite music -- it's a great mood enhancer.

If you're worried about being overheard by children or neighbors, add sound insulation. Hang curtains and a thick rug -- fabric absorbs sound. A padded headboard helps in this department too.

5. Ban the Beanie Babies

The bedroom is your own private sanctuary, but beware what message you're sending by using it as a display case for your hobbies. Stuffed animals are a no-no, as are too many tiny pillows. What looks good in a bedding store just looks fussy and high-maintenance at home -- not the message you're trying to send.

6. Take a look

Add a mirror somewhere. It doesn't have to be attached to the ceiling, but a cleverly positioned mirror, or even a mirrored piece of furniture, can really spice things up. It will add glimmer and shine, both sexy qualities. Plus, you might discreetly catch of a glimpse of the proceedings.

A closet door left "accidentally" ajar, with its inside mirror angled toward the bed, can give you a thrill without risking embarrassment.

By Lydia Somerville

Beautiful Women

My Beautiful Body

Body Image and Sexuality

Women in particular are prone to issues around body image. A person who looks perfectly fine to her partner may be convinced that she's fat or ugly. Taken to extremes, this becomes "body dysmorphia," an inability to see your body the way it is, which is a contributing factor in eating disorders.

Both men and women are attracted to people who are confident in their bodies. This confidence can overcome a great many body flaws. Many fat or ugly people have active sex lives in part because of differences in how they understand and use their bodies.

If your body is imperfect, don't let it get in the way of enjoying your sexuality and expressing your desire for your partner. If you find it hard to let go of anxious thoughts about your flaws, you may want to try a few sessions of therapy to work on this issue.

Ouma se Kombuis

My Beautiful Body

True Enemies of the Skin

Healthy skin is a valuable asset to anyone’s appearance, whatever their age.

First impressions of a person make a lasting impression, and among the details we first notice about others are their facial features and their skin.

For thousands of years, women especially, have been using lotions and creams to keep their skin silky-smooth. Legend has it that Cleopatra bathed in milk to preserve the beauty of her skin. Today it is indeed a proven fact that milk contains fruit acids currently being hailed as the most significant anti-aging cosmetic discovery! New and costly products are constantly being developed, offering the promise of a more beautiful and above all, more youthful skin.

But all will be in vain if the true enemies of the skin are ignored or a blind eye is turned. The enemies’ list is long and sometime scary.

Enemies’ lists

1. Baking in the sun may feel good and a beautiful bronzed tan may look good, but it is the worst thing that can be done to your skin. The sun’s ultra-violet rays can cause wrinkling and skin cancer. (Skin cancer is the most common of all cancers. It accounts for nearly half of all cancers in the United States. More than 2 million cases of non-melanoma skin cancer are found in this country each year. Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer, will account for about 68,130 cases of skin cancer in 2010 – American Cancer Society)

2. The wind dries and toughens the skin. Cover up on windy days – even if it means to wear a scarf to protect your face – and use a moisturizer regularly as preventative measure.

3. Dry air, whether hot or cold, robs the skin of moisture. In winter use a humidifier or boil a kettle in your bedroom before going to sleep. Plants are also good humidifiers since they emit water vapour.

4. Smoking is bad for your skin. Nicotine constricts blood vessels, interferes with the flow of oxygen and nutrients to skin cells, and can emphasise crow’s-feet. (Women smokers may develop crow's-feet earlier than women who don't smoke. According to Dr. Weiss, smoking makes you unconsciously squint as your eyes try to avoid the smoke's irritating and drying effects – MotherNature.com)

5. Hot baths can take moisture out of your skin. The longer the soak, the more moisture you lose. Go easy on these, as well as hot showers.

6. Poor nutrition affects the whole body, but the skin may show it first.

7. Inactivity means sluggish skin. Exercise increases blood flow and bathe the skin in its natural moisturizer – sweat.

8. Facial exercises designed to fight wrinkles may instead actually produce them, since they tend to crease the skin into set patterns.

In conclusion, for skin care, simpler is often better. For instance, you’ll find that wearing protective clothing to shield yourself from the harsh elements is a better method of skin care than using very expensive beauty creams.

Ouma se Kombuis

My Beautiful Body

The Best Lingerie for a Slim Look

You want to get that slimming look but have nowhere to start. Well there is plenty out there for you to choose from for sure. There are plenty of lingerie garments to choose from. You are only moments away from a slim and fabulous you. No matter what your body type is there is a piece of lingerie for you. It will give the appearance of slimming you down and make you feel absolutely heavenly when in it. Here are a few to get started with and ponder.

Girdles: This is a sexy and fabulous idea for women of all sizes. Girdles hide all your flaws, make you look sleek and curvy, and make all your clothes fit just right. Not even hours at the gym or a diet can weave this magic. Even those ladies with the “perfect” bodies can benefit from this sweet little number. It may take a few days to get used to. Nevertheless, if you have the right size it will feel like you own skin in no time.

Corsets: These are sexy and feel great. They no only slim the waist and flatten out the profile corsets give great cleavage. A corset offers a woman a streamline appearance and even offers back support. The goal with the corset is to boost up the assets and flatten out the rest comfortably. The corset is not about skinny as much as it is about trim and sleek. You will be able to wear it with anything and not as just an intimate piece. You wear this wherever you decide to go and stop traffic.

Bustier: This is very similar to the corset except that it has bra cups built into it. Bustiers come with or with out straps or a garter. This will all depend on what style you choose. Whether you go strapless or not won’t matter. This lingerie piece can hold up all breast sizes with out an issue. This is even true for very busty women. No matter what you do in your bustier you will not have to worry about flopping out or it shimmying down. You will always have complete support and control. In fact, the bustier puts any bra to shame as far as slimming, boosting, and support is concerned. This bra has a slimming waist to make sure not only your breasts look great but the rest of you too.

Chemise: This lovely garment has a special way of slimming all women down. The flare it has at the hips hides any bulging or flaws one might have. A chemise has tiny straps and looks similar to a small slip. You can use this in any fashion you choose. It can be worn with dresses, skirts, or by itself. Either way you will look trim and sexy in it.

Teddies: This is not the bear we are talking about here. This is that sweet little body suit that makes all women feel pretty and sexy. This is a common piece to many women’s wardrobes. The teddy makes you look slim and trim in all the right places. It also enhances your best features as well. A teddy should be a part of every woman’s wardrobe.

Baby Doll: A classic style that is still around today. This short little slimming nightgown has cups in it for the extra support and allure. The design of the Baby Doll will slim out any woman and make her feel sexy. Many of the Baby Doll sets come with at least one pair of matching panties as well. Choose from a variety of sexy styles and mix and match. No matter which ones you pick the design is fabulous. The cups will push you up and out while the flare underneath will make him wonder what you are hiding under that sexy little thing.

Depending on your particular body there will be at least two pieces here that will work for you. Every woman deserves to feel trim, slim, and divine. Find out what works best with you and fly to the heavens with it. There is always that special piece out there somewhere for everyone. You can never go wrong with a beautiful, slimming piece of lingerie.