It is a time to be with family and friends, to laugh and sing, be grateful for what we have and to remember those who are not here with us anymore on the physical plane. In other words, be of good cheer.

I have much to be grateful for.  I started this year (Jan 2, 2009) in intensive care and not expected to live.  By the grace of God, all the prayers said for my recovery and the wonderful staff at North Shore Hospital at Glen Cove, I lived.  I am ending the year much healthier.  I also lost my dad this year in June.  It is my first Christmas without him.  But tonight as I write this, I write it with great gratitude for all the love and support he has given me all my life.  And so I remember and celebrate his life.

Tomorrow I will spend time with good friends, a second family you might call it.  And I look forward to all the day will bring.

And so, I wish for you all that you desire.  I wish you a very Happy, Prosperous, Healthy and Abundant New Year!

Many Blessings,

Susan

Technorati Tags: Happy Holidays

I’ve always loved the song Hands by Jewel. It is a beautiful song and to me, seems more timely than ever.  So many of us are worried about what is going to happen to us – will we lose our jobs, can we pay our bills, what happens if I get sick?  These things can happen, and they may not, so you end up worrying about things that never take place.

I am still in the hospital and I am scheduled to go home instead of a physical therapy rehab.  I have my moments when I worry, “I don’t feel ready, what is going to happen to me?”  But I can’t keep my focus there.

We all know that whatever you pay attention to expands.  So you have to keep your focus on what you want.  I have to keep my focus on what I want – being able to walk out of the hospital and be able to take care of myself.

So for all of us – I am putting a YouTube version of Jewel singing, Hands to remind us:

“Not to worry ’cause worry is wasteful
And useless in times like these”
I won’t be made useless
I won’t be idle with despair
I will gather myself around my faith
For light does the darkness most fear”

I would like to hear your comments and experiences with worry and fear and how you deal with it.

Remember, “We are never broken.”

Susan Bonfiglio

Technorati Tags: abundance,, economy, fear, Hands, Jewel, Susan Bonfiglio, worry

I am happy to report that I am doing better now.  I am off the ventilator but still in the hospital.  But it got me thinking about abundance and how fortunate I truly am. I have been so blessed by the abundance of prayers and support that I have received from both my friends in my daily life and from my online friends.  When I fell ill, my online friends circulated the news and started an international prayer room.  I was blessed to have someone put my name in the Wailing Wall.

When I was wakened from my unconscious state and saw all that was done in my name, as sick as I was, I knew I was rich beyond measure.  I have one friend that I met online who lives in Canada and sent me a card every week. It wasn’t just the cards, flowers and calls. They were and continue to be wonderful.  But it was the realization that I have an abundance of love in my life.  I wouldn’t trade that for all the riches in the world.  Prosperity and abundance are not just about money and what we possess…it is about love and friendship.

In this time in our lives, it is so easy to focus on what is happening in the world, our 401K’s….and don’t get me wrong, they are important.  But remember to look at the blessings you have in your life also and be grateful for them.

I’ve been given many gifts throughout this ordeal.  I have been given a second chance at life.  And I have been shown how rich my life truly is. So many people never find this out until it’s too late.

To all my friends and to those I will never know or meet who prayed for me or sent well wishes, my most profound thank you for being a gift in my life.  I love you all.   I also want to say a special thank you to Dr. Brij Sharma and Dr. Kwiatek for saving my life.  A special thank you to Linda Navarro, who helped me enormously during this time.  And also to the team of nurses, speech pathologists, social workers, respiratory, physical and occupational therapists and personal care aides at North Shore University Hospital at Glen Cove. They went above and beyond their jobs and offered me support and encouragement that I will never forget.  They are all angels in my book.

If you would like to share your experience of love and abundance, it would be an honor to include it here.  We can all use that kind of good news!

Susan Bonfiglio

Technorati Tags: abundance,, Gratitude, love, North Shore University Hospital at Glen Cove, Susan Bonfiglio

But the lessons of September 11th go beyond loss and pain. I was privileged to work as a grief counselor at the Yankee Stadium Memorial Service in NYC. It was a time the city came together, our sadness and pain the back drop for one of our finest hours as a community of people.

September 11th taught me that I need to embrace life, to live it abundantly! None of us is promised a tomorrow. Each day is precious. No matter what the stock market is, the size of our bank accounts, whether we are in the jobs we want, or what we look like, we are here today. And that means we have the ability to change the quality of our lives.

In the times of loss and sadness, I have found my gratitude. I remember to say thank you. I appreciate the small gestures, the offer of a tissue in a time of grief. When I can stay in that gratitude, I live with a prosperity consciousness. I am blessed beyond good fortune to have people who care about me and that my needs are taken care of.

From this day forward may you live in that prosperity consciousness! There is more than enough. We are blessed at all times, no matter what our present circumstances.

And may God bless the families who have lost their loved ones.

Susan Bonfiglio

Technorati Tags: abundance,, Gratitude, prosperity consciousness,, September 11th, Susan Bonfiglio, Yankee Stadium