TouchStone Moments

Introduction So, what exactly are TouchStone Moments anyway? These are the moments that absolutely rock your soul and change your life forever. They vibrate every cell in your body until you wake up to a new vision. It is the vision you see from within and not just with your eyes. It is that very moment when you look at something or some situation that you have seen a million times, only this time you have touched a deeper level and there is something remarkably different. It is a pivotal moment in your life when you know you will never be the same and all things will be measured by this moment. It is as if the blinders have been removed, and for the first time you can see with amazing clarity. Every part of you understands that you have just stepped into some new vortex of energy. Yet, it is old and familiar. Your cells begin the celebration. There is a party going on inside of your cells because your brain has just come on board to the epiphany - to the Great Mystery of Life. Now everything, or at least that one thing, has finally fallen into its proper place in the Universe, and you get it! Your mind and your body finally understand. Your soul has just stepped on a new TouchStone Moment in life. Neuroscientists in the Neurobiology Department at New York University call these TouchStone Moments “aha moments”. They have done some in-depth and fascinating research. In fact, if you were to look at these moments on functional MRI you would see your amygdala (a part of your brain that holds long term memory and is stimulated by emotional response) light up into amazing colors. So what does this mean? It means every time a TouchStone Moment arises, you have an opportunity for significant, long lasting transformation. It means, when that epiphany comes on board, you have what neuroscientists call “a new world view”! Isn’t this fabulous? It is a situation for transformation! Now, sometimes those TouchStone Moments are golden nuggets. They are sweet and subtle. They come like the distant smell of a loaf of bread that has been gently kneaded and left on the kitchen windowsill to rise. You know something is cooking. You feel the rise within you. You sense the transformation about to begin, and ahhhh there it is, the fresh baked bread. “Oh, I know what that is — now I put it together,” you say to yourself. There is a soft sense of relief that washes over you. All the while your intuition is secretly saying, “YES!” Other times the TouchStone Moments are not so sweet or gentle. It’s more like the freight train coming down the track carrying coal from the mine. You have a few choices. You either jump on board, jump out of the way or you get flattened. Even in these situations you have felt the rumble coming. You know you are standing on the tracks and you just don’t have the clarity or the good sense to move, and for whatever reason, you stand frozen questioning yourself. “Is that a train coming?” Again every cell in your body is jumping up and down screaming at you and once again your brain finally jumps on board - Ahhh! Now these are the TouchStone situations for transformation! These are the TouchStone Moments that spank you. Nothing else will do, but the Universe stepping in for some good old divine ass whippin’. These are not my favorite TouchStone Moments, without a doubt. However, they are effective and they definitely make a lasting impression. What I strive for are the TouchStone Moments that are brought to the surface in a safe and sacred way. It’s true, I have been slammed by the freight train countless times, and I have had the fresh baked bread not quite as often. However, when the TouchStone Moments have come while I am in a sacred space, I find that they sink in, take hold, and enable the situation for transformation to unfold with grace and integrity. My intention with this book is to share with you some of the golden nuggets I have found in the TouchStone Moments of my own life. In sharing my TouchStone Moments I hope to touch your heart a little, tap your cellular memory a little and even open your soul to your own golden nuggets. It is so very important to understand that you can create simple ceremonies to honor these TouchStone Moments in your life. When you do, they are anchored with profound integrity and locked sweetly into your amygdala. In each chapter you will find proactive components that can be used as building blocks on your journey. They are the magical ingredients that lay the strong foundation for a healthy, joy-filled life. Use the TouchStone Moments Affirmations in each chapter as a daily mantra to help shift your consciousness to a fresh perspective. Write the affirmation down. Carry it with you and include it in your daily activities. (I like to write the one I am working with on my bathroom mirror, and I also repeat it as I exercise) If you begin to feel stuck in your patterns again, take a deep breath and repeat your TouchStone Moments Affirmation. The TouchStone Moments Guided Meditations, found at the end of each chapter, can be read in advance, or you can listen to them on a CD. These insightful meditations lock the wisdom in place on a cellular level. You will also find a blank page at the end of each chapter for your Golden Nuggets Journal. Writing your experiences down as you move through your TouchStone Moments is a powerful way to say, “yes!" out loud. It is a wonderful opportunity to keep track of changes, emotions and the revelations that occur during your TouchStone Moments. I have come to the realization we all go through certain rites of passage within our lifetime. These times are the inevitable, pivotal moments of change. We can choose how we wish to handle those rites of passage. Your TouchStone Moments can be situations for transformation, or you can stay stuck and hide under the blanket of denial. I will tell you this: I would not change one morsel of my life. Every golden nugget, though sometimes a painful stumbling block, has rocked me onto a path of unconditional love: a journey too precious to ever imagine or think about changing. The Touchstone Moments have been the foundation for which I live and breathe today. Whichever way the TouchStone Moments come - I say bring them on. I say be awake to see them, and mostly I say, hold on for the ride..... and enjoy the journey. With Passion & Respect, Tammi