Here in Bali, there is a strong Hindu tradition, although the majority of islands are mainly Muslim. Every day you see the offerings people, place and say a prayer to the gods in their homes, in the temples and out on the streets. This is what makes spending time in Ubud so special, it changes the energy.

A prayer can be a conversation with God or with your higher self whatever you wish to call this.  We can pray to our guides or Angels for help or to our ancestors.  – In times of need, we remember to pray, in our, everyday lives we often forget.

Ground Me Mala 

Here are some tips that helped me:

MEDITATION

A daily meditation practice - it sounds hard work but actually, it's easy, enjoyable and your mind and body love it! Breathing is the key to life, so meditation is a way of focusing on the breath and bringing harmony within, therefore helping you deal with the daily stress of life. 

Try it, it costs nothing and can really bring about some welcome changes in your habits in life.

Choose a meditation technique

1. Download app Sadhguru is my meditation of choice (Read his book Inner Engineering - a practical guide to life)
2. Download Calm
3. Listen to a guided meditation - check them out on Spotify first before buying
4. Use a mantra of your choice- a Mala helps remind you to say the mantra 108 times

Establish a morning routine

1. Create a space of 15-20 minutes to practice your meditation technique. Just do it and get on with your day.

2. During the day check in and see how you feel? Do a few deep breaths and let go of your stress or stretch for your body. 

3. Do you have a Monkey Mind?  Are you repeatedly going over problems or scenarios in your head?  Repeat a mantra and dissolve this nonsense. It works! You can say it in your head or sing it out loud.  Alternatively, just listen to a mantra and feel the harmony it brings to your mind and body. Sound frequency is a very powerful self-healing tool.

4. Use and wear a mala to remind you to meditate, and use your mantra for optimal health. Choose from a selection of Malas from the Mala Mantra Maker catalogue.

5. Be the observer to your thoughts, what is your mind thinking about? Question your thoughts? 

6. Be kind to yourself and others you will feel so much better in yourself. Kindness costs nothing and brings happiness to yourself and others.

7. Smile - when you smile you actually start to feel better, as there are marma points around your mouth. 

8. Walk in nature or focus on a plant or beautiful flower by focusing your mind on this you will be connecting with nature and also your inner self.  Watch the way the leaves blow in the wind.  Keep focusing and as you focus you relax your mind, body and soul.

A simple mantra to bring peace: 

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti (Peace to your mind, body and spirit)

 Lucky Me Mala

Today I choose lucky me Mala - I am sitting in Gluten-free cafe in Ubud. It’s raining cats and dogs, the streets are submerged in a few inches of water. We are swimming in water. 

I feel lucky, wearing my Lucky me Mala it's made from aventurine stones and lava beads, as today I want to focus on all the things in life I am lucky for:

• I am living in Bali, a place I really feel at home in.
• Having a cute little bali house to live in - with a lovely owner Yanti
• I am choosing to make my new life the best I can with what I have available to be right now.
• I am free to choose my future.
• I have a lovely friend from the U.K. to visit me next month an so excited to spend some time with an old friend. 
• I can walk, talk and write! ( well working on the last one!)
• I met my lovely friend Yuni for coffee and we had a laugh about life. 
• I have a big raincoat (that covers me from top to toe) so I am lucky I am protected from the rain ( I usually forget it). I refused to buy one for some time but it's a lifesaver.
• Did I say I am living in Bali, I know I do need to pinch myself sometimes.
• I am making Malas  - which I love! I want to share this uplifting and lifesaving tool that helped me through some massive changes in my life. 
• I am alive right now - thank you! 

Like the beautiful Adventurine semi-precious stones - Ubud is an area of Bali that is lush and green and a beautiful place to live in. We all have so much to be lucky for, I guess it’s just the focus we have on life!  We are living beings capable of making the change in our lives in so many ways, I guess it's about taking the chances to lead the best life you can.

Oh and lucky me I am eating a passion pastry cake at the gluten-free cafe 🍰

Free postage on Lucky Me Mala visit: www.malamantramaker.com - Lucky Me Mala

If you can't afford a Mala yet, why not join my monthly giveaway instead,

Blessings from beautiful Bali,

MMM

Express Myself Mala

Meet Julia @trippingtribe wearing my Express Myself Mala in turquoise semi-precious stones and lava beads from my new Mount Agung collection @malamantramaker  - so excited to see my Mala being worn and loved 💕🙏

We all have difficulties sometimes expressing our true feelings for fear of being misunderstood or labelled.  When we are in need of help I guess it is probably the hardest time to reach out and ask for some help from friends or family. Instead, we just soldier on and hope the feelings will soon pass us by and we are able to ‘get over’ these uncomfortable feelings. Sometimes feelings come up for no apparent reason, or so it seems, but really the feelings were there all along and have just found a safe time to pop up.