Monthly Archives: November 2009

Gift Ideas for the Spiritually Minded

This is not a channeled Holiday Gift Giving List just an inspired one. So please read on…

Christmas Gift Giving Ideas

Christmas Gift Giving Ideas

Top Ten Gift Ideas

1. Give a membership to the Spiritual Cinema Circle.

Give the gift of spiritual story telling at its best...

Give the gift of spiritual story telling at its best...

They send you a new DVD every month with spiritual movies. I just joined last month and was treated to Wayner Dyer’s The Shift and I got to watch it in the comfort of my own home. Every month there’s new selections with discussions between the movie directors and the Spiritual Cinema host, Stephen Simon, as well as questions for contemplating the meaning of the movie. I just love it! For $49.95, you can give a 3 month membership to a friend. It makes a great gift!

2. Give out a reusable bag full of reusable goodies-This makes Mother Earth happy!

Shopping bag sets, reusable bottles, cloth holiday gift bags, and more...

Shopping bag sets, reusable bottles, cloth holiday gift bags, and more...

It can be fun to buy reusable bag gift sets for a friend who needs to stop using the plastic or paper bags from the supermarket. Fill it with a earth-friendly plastic reusable bottle or stainless steel bottle that are decorated with fun images. Slip inside a lunch bag or snack baggies that are also reusable. Shop around on this web site for fun and interesting ideas for helping Mother Earth by using less plastic. I got great snack bags for my son’s lunch that I reuse again and again and have great designs. Bento boxes are a new trend for Americans to take their lunches to work so check that out too.  Also, they are selling reusable holiday gift giving bags which you might want to check out for yourself. Instead of using wrapping paper, wrap your gifts in reusable cloth bags. What a neat concept, right?

3. Give a gift certificate for a spiritual experience like a Reiki session, massage, yoga class, or psychic reading!

Give an experience they'll never forget...

Give an experience they'll never forget...

There’s nothing better than being handed a gift certificate for a wonderful spiritual experience. Make sure that the recipient lives close to the service being provided and actually will appreciate the gift. Psychic readings can be done over the phone so location is not so important. Look in your local spiritual magazine or go to your local spiritual bookstore for recommendations. I have a few of my favorites listed here if you are in San Diego.

4. Give a gift that helps Fair Trade Artisans Out of Poverty

Beautiful gifts that help others...

Beautiful gifts that help others...

At the Unity Center in San Diego, they had a booth set up with gift items from ExoticWorldGifts.com and I was very impressed. The quality, construction, and simple beauty was remarkable and then to realize that I would be helping artisans in various countries under the Fair Trade act–well, how could I not include this in my list of gift ideas? I will be doing some shopping on this site for sure or you can check out the gifts in person at the Unity Center off Miramar Road on Sundays. One of the most amazing things are these art pieces created by elephants. Yes, I said elephants. See the picture of elephants above–that was created by an elephant with a paintbrush in his trunk. Check out the video on YouTube. Unbelievable! Proceeds of the elephant artwork goes to help save the Asian elephant in protected environments. Good stuff!

5. Movie Night Basket of Goodies

Movie night ideas...

Movie night ideas...

I was thinking about what spiritual movies would make great gifts and I thought what would make it better is to give the whole movie night experience in a basket. This makes it a bit more personal for your friend. So, buy some microwave popcorn, bake some cookies, add a warm blanket or slippers, and one of your favorite spiritual movies in a nice basket with a big bow on top. Any friend or couple would be happy to receive such a gift. If you can’t think of what spiritual movies you might like to include, here’s a list of some of my favorites:

6. Give the newly released channeled book available on this web site: Book of Yeoshua: Messages of Love and Peace

A gift of messages from spirit...

A gift of messages from spirit...

Yes–I know this is my own book but I do think it would make a great gift for anyone on their spiritual path. Here’s the description:

“Melinda Pajak, spiritual medium/psychic, brings forth a channeled book that is enlightening, empowering, and full of down-to-earth spiritual guidance from her guide, Yeoshua, known to us as Jesus. The energy and knowledge in the book is soft, gentle, healing, joyful, and extremely practical. The topics range from how to be in relationships to caring for Mother Earth to creating a spiritual connection with your higher self. The intention of this book is to open your awareness and help you to heal important areas of your life. This book serves as a guidepost along your spiritual journey—illuminating the path before you and walking with you as you move forward in peace and love.”

7. Give a gift certificate for your own gifts and/or services

Give the gift of you...

Give the gift of you...

Sometimes the best gift is what is unique to you. If you do great things with landscaping or babysitting or cooking/baking or helping people with computers or iPhones, maybe you can create a gift certificate with an hour of your time for this activity. Cook someone a dish, bake some cookies, help someone with a landscaping idea for their front yard, or offer to babysit for an afternoon. Or maybe you just want to take your friend out to lunch or to the movies. This is also a great idea as you are giving an experience. These are all simple things that are very appreciated.

We forget that sometimes the simple gift of our time and a readiness to help is much more appreciated than a $10 item from Target. This can also help out if you are a little strapped for cash this year as so many are. I’ve made a Gift Certificate Template in Microsoft Word to get you started. Download it by clicking on it (or right-clicking on it if you have a PC) and open it in Word. Fill it in, print it out, and find a unique way to give it to your loved one. Creativity is key! Get a Chinese take-out box or slip it inside a magazine related to your skill (e.g. computer magazine if you are offering computer help) or put it rolled up in the hand of a stuffed animal.

8. Give rocks, crystals, and other beautiful gifts from Mother Earth.

Give a gift from Earth...

Give a gift from Earth...

There’s a great rock store in Old Town (San Diego, CA) called the South American Imports Store. I love the beautiful products this store keeps in stock and I love how they include little cards with every rock giving you a description of how it can energetically help you. I go there as a special treat for myself but have already purchased some Christmas gifts there as well. They have a lovely selection available from their web site as well so check it out.

9. Give the fruits of Mother Earth (quite literally) from Harry and David

Fresh, ripe fruits, tasty nuts, and fabulous chocolates...

Fresh, ripe fruits, tasty nuts, and fabulous chocolates...

I visited the Harry and David store in Medford, Oregon and I was quite impressed. They really do grow their own pears and they are delicious. In fact, all the goodies we tasted were phenomenal. Plus, they are very concerned about being a “green” business and have been reducing, reusing, and recycling for decades. You can choose to send pears or apples or a basket of fruit and nuts or even add some chocolates to the mix. It’s all delectable. They even have a Fruit of the Month Club so your special someone can eat delicious ripe fruit every month. Yummy!

10. Something for the Goddess you know and love (gifts for your best girlfriend)

Beautiful clothes, accessories, jewelry...

Beautiful clothes, accessories, jewelry...

I found this store from someone on the Yahoo Group related to Mary Magdalene who mentioned that you can buy a T-shirt with the Labyrinth from the Chartres Cathedral in France on it. It also has the quote, “not all who wander are lost” so I had to buy it. I don’t see that they carry that particular shirt anymore but they have some really nice stuff. I’ve bought other items from the Pyramid Collection and love the quality and service they provide. They have a nice selection of clothing (plus-sizes too) and gifts for those with a spiritual bent but it’s mostly for women. Sorry guys unless you have to buy for someone of the opposite gender and then you’d be in luck.

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I hope you have enjoyed this gift list and please let me know if you have other ideas. I’m always looking for new gift suggestions as well. Post them in the comments. And when you are shopping for loved ones this holiday season, use your intuition! It works great!

Gratitude–Spiritual Principle Number Two

What would you like to share with us this Thanksgiving week about gratitude?

The gratitude shift...

The gratitude shift...

Yeoshua: We are so glad there is a holiday around the substantial spiritual principle of gratitude. This is my spiritual principle number two. This is an amazingly important and amazingly simple principle to master. It is simply about giving thanks for every person, place, thing, or circumstance in your life. The process of giving thanks is transformative. It can take you from anger to bliss when you properly give thanks and see the situation from a different perspective.

Let me give you an example. Many people right now are preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday. They are cursing the many people and long lines in the grocery stores of America. They are ticking off all the items on their to-do list in regards to cooking a turkey with all of the trimmings. They are worrying about who is coming to be seated at their table. They are worrying about how much money it will cost to buy all the food needed to prepare this fabulous feast. That is one perspective. Let us think of another perspective.

What about the families that cannot be with one another this Thanksgiving because they have no money to make the trip? What about the families who do not have the means to buy and cook a turkey this year? What about the single individuals who have no one to share a meal with on Thanksgiving or on any other day? These are a few other perspectives. Does it change how you feel about the rushing around, the crowded parking lots, and the cursing the time you spend preparing and cooking? Do you look on the situation with gratitude as a result of this change in perspective? I would think yes. Can this change of perspective take you from cursing the holiday to being thankful for your own circumstances? I would think the answer is yes.

So, as you move through this holiday, I ask you to give thanks, for real. Look around you at the people you love and the people who love you and give thanks. Look around at the place you call home and give thanks. Look around at the food on the table and give thanks. Move through this holiday with joy on your lips and peace in your heart.

And whenever you find yourself cranky or angry or out of sorts, look for something to be thankful for even if it’s just a flower growing out of the sidewalk. This simple gesture will transform you if you allow it to. God bless you. Namasté.

Want to be psychic? There’s an app for that…

FYI: This message is from me, Melinda, and is not channeled.

I was perusing one of my favorite web sites, The Daily Grail, and came across this blog post about a new app for the iPhone where you can practice your psychic abilities. I had to post about it here because it’s just funny. I was joking with a friend of mine the other day about making an app for psychic or spiritual work and using the punchline, “There’s an app for that.” I don’t know. Maybe you had to be there.

Anyway, here’s the link to the article so you can read more about the app. Check out The Daily Grail if you want to read some interesting news articles about science and the paranormal and different stuff.

About the ESP Trainer

ESP Trainer iPhone App

ESP Trainer iPhone App

So, I downloaded the new app to my iPhone and gave it a few tries. Basically, you have to tune into your intuition and predict which color has the picture behind it. A color is randomly chosen each time by the app and you get 24 tries to predict correctly. They say to send them an email if you consistently hit 12 out of 24 correctly. Well, I wish I had better news for you all about my success. The best I did was 8 out of 24. I only tried it 3 times and I did the best on it when I wrote down my answers and then entered them into the phone which I thought was interesting. I’d love to know how you guys do. Anyone want to try it? Post your results here.

I’m not convinced that this is a true test of psychic ability–no–not by a long shot (and that’s not just because I didn’t do that well–ha ha!). Would you rather a psychic be able to tune into you and your situation or tune into an iPhone app? But it is still fun and if you see me and I’m crazily tapping at my iPhone practicing on getting better at it, don’t tell anyone, OK?