In honor of my birthday month...

I'm writing about my favorite subject

LOVE

Love is what we are.

It's what we come from, what we come as,

and what we will return to.

Notice I said what, and not who.

'Who' can lead us down the rabbit hole of roles we play here in earth school...

female, mother, daughter, brother, friend, husband, gay, patriot, christian,

democrat, veteran, student, cancer survivor, teacher, doctor,

nanny, soccer player, artist, dancer, gamer, and on and on.

While the roles we play are cool, fun, and rewarding, and sometimes also overwhelming, messy and hard... they are just roles we are playing.

We can bring our loving essence to each of the roles we play,

but the roles are not what we are.

So what are we?

We are Pure Loving Consciousness

(aka Awareness aka Presence)

Sure, there is a personality attached to this human suit we inhabit here.

That personality plays roles. It has likes and dislikes, opinions, feelings, beliefs about stuff. It judges and compares, freaks out and despairs, gets addicted and gets free, dreams and worries, talks too much, keeps secrets, etc.

The personality has various experiences based on the Soul's

unique spiritual curriculum, karma, gifts, and its choices.

AND...

We are not our personality.

We are not our ego.

We are not our body.

We are not our emotions.

We are not our thoughts or our mind.

We are Divine beings having a human experience.

Divine Beings are pretty rad!

I mean really freaking rad!

And we get to wear these human suits

and learn all this cool shit and have these wild experiences.

Woah, we are super lucky!

And sometimes it can feel super sucky :(

Okay... back to the Love part.

I've been a hardcore 'seeker' in this lifetime.

After graduating ASU and getting an entry level sales job with

Russell Stover Candies in 1990ish, I was like WTF? Is this all there is?

This started my deeper inquiry inside and out,

Desperately searching for what life was really about.

In all of my studies, healing, seeking and finding

everything always came down to this:

We are Love.

Whether we remember this or not.

Doubt it or know it.

Hide it or show it.

Resist it or revel in it.

Deny it or share it.

We came from love.

We are here to love.

We return to love.

We are love.

Love is not just a wishy-washy 4 letter word of poetry and songs.

It's not something to seek outside.

It's not something we need to be good enough for.

Not something we need to prove we deserve.

Not something we need to earn or be worthy of.

It's not something we can achieve or win or even hold onto.

It doesn't come from parents or partners, friends or bosses

(though all of these folks can share and express loving).

Love is not needy or clingy

romantic or dramatic

messy or fleeting

unhealthy or codependent.

It's not something given or taken away by some punitive God.

Love is the essence of every living being.

It doesn't leave us, or betray us, or forsake us.

We are never abandoned by Love.

While life can certainly deal us some unsavory cards;

Our spiritual curriculum can be intense and confusing;

Our trauma can be deep and daunting to navigate;

And our Karma can be a bitch to clear...

Through it all, there is a solid place where Love lives.

Inside and as each of us. Always and Forever.

I refer to this place as the Soul.

Some call it Higher Power or Higher Self.

Others call it The Authentic Self.

And some call it the Notorious G.O.D.

(Thanks Rainn Wilson for that phrase. Check out his book

Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution)

I call it YOU and ME

The Real Deal YOU and ME!

Afterall, we were created in Her image ;)

So today...

Receive this precious Gift of You!

Open it and DeLight in it.

Share the Love you are.

Don't wait another day.

Let's SOULibrate!

In Loving,

Teri Jo

I am not I. I am this one Walking beside me whom I do not see,

Whom at times I manage to visit, And whom at other times I forget;

The one who remains silent when I talk, The one who forgives,

sweet, when I hate, The one who takes a walk where I am not,

The one who will remain standing when I die.

~Juan Ramón Jiménez (translated by Robert Bly)

YOUTUBE: How to Find Your Soul (11 minutes)

You don’t have a soul.

You are a soul.

You have a body.

~1892 Quaker, George MacDonald

(often attributed to C.W. Lewis)

The Way of Love

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels,

but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 

And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains,

but have not love, I am nothing. 

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, 

but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient and kind;

love does not envy or boast;

it is not arrogant or rude.

It does not insist on its own way;

it is not irritable or resentful;

It does not rejoice at wrongdoing,

but rejoices with the truth. 

Love bears all things,

believes all things,

hopes all things, 

endures all things.

Love never ends.

~The Bible: 1 Corinthians 13

VIDEO: Teri Jo's Resume (3 minutes)

(A walk down memory lane - I miss this part of my life)

Everything you see has its roots in the unseen world. The forms may change, yet the essence remains the same. Every wonderful sight will vanish, every sweet word will fade, But do not be disheartened, The source they come from is eternal, growing, Branching out, giving new life and new joy. Why do you weep? The source is within you. And this whole world is springing up from it.

~Rumi

The ORGANIZED Corner

This is where I share about my Home Organizing business - a tip or trick,

a client story, a win or struggle as a Soulo business owner.

TIP: Splashes of color spark joy and creativity.

This is a picture of my living room. It's my happy place.

Do you need help making your home your happy place?

If so, email me here and let's set up a free consultation

We are slowed down sound and light waves, a walking bundle

of frequencies tuned into the cosmos. We are souls dressed up

in sacred biochemical garments and our bodies are the instruments through which our souls play their music. 

~Albert Einstein

SOUL PANCAKE: Heart Attack! (3 minutes)

All you need is love.

~The Beatles

Got clutter? Paper piles? An overflowing inbox? Not enough time?

Call me at 310-907-6846 to book your free consultation

terijowheeler.com

Me! Not little me (though she is adorable and has been represented as the inspirational soul of the month before), but BIG me! Yes, I inspire myself.

I could make a list of my short-comings and character defects here and join in the all-too-common ego story of proclaiming I'm not good enough or I'm too much (two sides of the same coin)... but I won't because that is a false narrative. That whole putting ourselves down business is old news. It's time we open the gift of who we are fully and share it with the world. So here goes...

I am awesome! I turn 57 years old on August 9th. I have no shame about my age because I'm much much older than this... timeless actually. I don't know how many times I've been here in earth school, but I'm no stranger to this land. I've been through all kinds of trauma, trials and tribulations. I have overcome so much in this lifetime and others. In many ways, I AM FREE!!! Free from the clever and convincing ego narratives that try to tell us who we are and how we should be. Hallelujah! I'm sure I had many lifetimes where I bought into and shared that not good enough BS, and played the blame-shame-games too, but not anymore. There are still some areas I am working on... obviously... because, I'm still here, but right now... I love my life and I love being me!

My greatest joys are learning, creating, organizing, healing, helping, teaching, and being. I am enthusiastic, courageous, tenacious, honest, willing to speak up, intuitive, wise, creative, funny and live with clarity, decisiveness and integrity. I pour my heart and soul into everything I am and do. I'm also a huge cry-baby, deeply moved by life, especially acts of kindness, love and compassion. I love fairies, hearts, colors, flowers, animals, children, sunshine, traveling and much more. I love everyone I meet, even if they are annoying, lol. It's a special place this earth school, and I am so grateful to be here visiting.

There are so many gifts still unopened from your birthday, there are so many hand-crafted presents that have been sent to you by God. The Beloved does not mind repeating, ‘Everything I have is also yours.’

~Hafiz

USM Video: Trusting the Divine Within Us (9 Minutes)

FREE Life-changing Soul-centered Awesome Class Series!

USM is offering a complimentary 5 session series in Spiritual Psychology called: A Golden Opportunity to Live a Spirit-Inspired Life.

The first two sessions happened recently and recordings are available.

Make sure to attend the final 3 sessions LIVE on Zoom

(Dates: Aug 22, Sept 12 and Oct 3 at 6-8pm PST)

Find out more info and register for this free course HERE.

Once you sign up you can get the videos of the first and second class.

There is nothing I recommend more than USM! I hope to see you there!

PS - Check out the videos above and below to get a taste.

USM Video: Transforming Conflict to Spiritual Growth (12 Minutes)

Who you think you might become is much less than who you already are.

~John-Roger

Series Rec (Apple TV): Shrinking

Focus your loving first in the relationship that you have with yourself.

Find and experience that loving. Once you've located the loving of yourself,

it then allows you to share and give that loving to others. Then you bear witness into your own holiness and the divine state within you.

Your ability to behold that divine state is a key.

~John Morton

We are not human beings having a spiritual experience.

We are spiritual beings having a human experience. 

~Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

A SONG 4 U: 'Harmour Love' by Syreeta

Lord I have done all I can today to bring more peace and love to the world, if you need me to do more tomorrow wake me up in the morning.

~Swami Satchidananda