Dear Friends,
I am delighted to be able to offer you this "from the heart-letter" as a way of connecting and sharing with you what is current, meaningful, and inspiring in my present journey. May this correspondence find you well and shine a little light upon your day!

This past month has been a time of deep reflection on life and death, as my dear Father made his transition on April 15th, 2009. I was so blessed to be able to spend the last week of his life with him, beside him, holding his hand, singing him quiet and tender songs of love, comfort and peace as he slowly let go of life in form. It was such an enlightening experience for me, to commune with his soul, comfort him and realize what a profound experience it is to finally completely surrender and let go of the body. To be there for him with complete, unconditional love and support probably was the most precious gift I gave to him in this life. I saw that the passage from the physical into the pure light of being can actually be quite beautiful, when there is openness, fearlessness, compassion and love. And I am aware that he can feel me, can feel love, support and prayers where he is now, and I connect with him many times a day.

I realize grief is a gift, in that it breaks our hearts open wider; it makes what matters in life clear; and it makes what doesn't matter apparent. Love is the reason we are here…it is what gives beauty and meaning to life, and every moment of love shared is never lost. It is the one thing that remains and is eternal. It is what sustains us all.

It is so clear to me that life is precious and short; and when there is a choice before us to create separation, or to create unity, to choose anger/fear or choose understanding/love, it always feels so much better to choose love. To be aligned with, and to stay aligned with love. To be able to look back at our choices in life and see that we did our best to continually choose love, forgiveness, kindness, and compassion; this is what I want to see of my life upon reflection.

So I give thanks for all the opportunities in this life to share love. I give thanks for those moments where our seeming differences melt, our hearts are touched and we feel how truly connected we are in love. And as the last song I sang for my Father's memorial service goes: "All I ask of you is forever to remember me, as loving you."

The story of the writing of I'M RIGHT HERE.
The song I’m Right Here which I recently sang from the depth of my heart at the mass for my Father, was inspired many years ago by my Mother. I was preparing for another trip to India, and one morning I received a call from my Mom, stating that she had had a very lucid dream in which I went to India and did not return (leaving the body over there). My cat had recently died, and I was doing a lot of reflecting on what was permanent, and what was impermanent. It was apparent to me that if I became very still, with no thoughts, I was not limited to form, and time, space and distance were simply thoughts, and could be transcended. It was possible to commune and connect with subtler realities beyond form. And it was apparent to me that we are so much more than this body and mind/ thoughts.

So I wanted to express in a song that though I might no longer be in form, I was still very much right here, reachable through a prayer, through a feeling of love in the heart. And that I was there in the whispering pines, and in the stars in the sky, as I was a part of everything, not separate from anything. So I wrote this song for my Mom, just in case I did not return. Fortunately I didn't even get sick on that trip, and through that experience this song came about and is used for many memorials, sacred events, and brings comfort to those who mourn the physical loss of their loved one.

Heart Opening Retreat
August 27 - 30
Give yourself a retreat that will truly open your heart.
With deeply uplifting music, chanting, guided and silent meditation, gentle yoga
practices and nourishing time in nature, you’ll rest into the blissful stillness of your being.











At Stewart Mineral Springs, Mount Shasta, California

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"Love sustains everything. Love is the foundation of the universe."
Amma (Mata Amritanandamayi)

Eternal Vision
"They know me not, who think I am only flesh and blood... a transient dweller on this fragile planet earth that gave me human birth. For I am spirit, eternal, indestructible, not confined to space or time... and when my sojourn here is through... my roles fulfilled, my assignments done... I will lay aside this garment called my body and move on to other mansions, roles, assignments in our Father's house of eternal life. So dry your tears... weep not overmuch for me... or for yourself... set me free, in the love that holds us all and makes us one eternally! Our paths will cross again... our minds and hearts will touch... our souls will shout with joy and laughter as we recall the lives we've lived... the worlds we've seen, the ways we've trod to find ourselves... at last... in God."
J. Sig Paulson