Patricia L. Atchison

YA Fiction & Non Fiction Author

Newsletter Articles

“I’m Happy.”

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Happy… the emotion, state of feeling pleasure. Finally!

Yesterday I had the joy of joining the Universal Women’s Nurture Circle in Calgary, Alberta, led by Tina Thrussell (Shin Dao Institute, The Way of the Heart). The evening featured a self-care, Hand and Face Reflexology healing session by Sandra Catania (Reflexologist at Elan Family Wellness Centre).

We started the circle talking about why we chose to attend. Themes of community, learning and experiencing something new, being there for self, and searching for joy and happiness were some of the comments made. Every woman shone with true light and beauty, as each shared their heartfelt emotions. After the reflexology session where we worked on face and hands, we separated into two small circles, and within my circle, each woman was given a chance to speak when they received the ‘talking stick’. The idea is when the stick is passed to someone, they hold it, breathe, and allow whatever thought or idea they wish to share to be spoken without interruption, judgment or comment from others in the circle. [Read more…] about “I’m Happy.”

On Turning Sixty… My Honest Look At Aging

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As I turn sixty and step into another decade of life, I find myself looking inward to see where I’m at in this moment in time. While I’m grateful to have ‘made it this long’, I know I am on the downward slope. I had a reading awhile back, where the psychic used cards to represent the decades of my life, laying down 8 cards (averaging one lives to be close to eighty). Being In my fifties, she removed 5 cards leaving three on the table. When I saw all those cards removed and 3 remaining, it left me with the feeling that time was slipping away. Now turning sixty, I can remove one more card. Now I’ve only 2 cards/decades left – twenty years if I am lucky (or maybe more – depending). It sure puts a different perspective on life. [Read more…] about On Turning Sixty… My Honest Look At Aging

Danceland at Manitou Beach

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Gems can be found in the most unique places, and Danceland is one of them. Nestled in the valley of Manitou Beach, Saskatchewan, Canada, along the shores of Little Manitou Lake is a historical dance hall called Danceland, built in 1930.

Little Manitou Lake

When we decided to camp this summer in the area of Manitou Beach, it was for the opportunity to go swimming in the “Lake of the Healing Waters”. Little Manitou Lake was named years ago by the Cree First Nations People in reference to the Great Spirit. Legend says that when their people were afflicted with illness, they consumed and swam in the waters of the lake, and became healed overnight. It is the only lake in North America with properties similar to the Dead Sea in Jordan. Swimming in it was a truly a unique experience as the mineral salts kept me afloat, and it was hard to stand up while in the water. My body felt rejuvenated and so soft after my dip in the lake.

Horsetail embedded into sub flooring.

Due to the popularity of the lake, the area blossomed during the 1920’s and it became a tourist destination equivalent to the throngs of people who visited Banff, Alberta, Canada during the same time. The original Danceland was built before 1919, but was replaced in 1930 with the current structure. What makes the 13,000 square foot dance hall so unique is its 5000 square feet of maple tongue and groove flooring. But that’s not all. The hardwood floor was laid without any nails being used. Beneath the floor is two sub floors with rolls of horsetail wrapped in burlap and tightly wound with wire, with six inches diameter between them. These rolls run cross ways under the floor every four feet. It’s the six inches of horsetail, imported from Quebec, Canada, which gives the floor its spring. The top sub floor has stops so the floor only goes down one to one and a half inches. The cushioning of the horsetail brings it back up. Imagine if you will, that the amount of horsetail used added up to one train car full (circa 1930’s). [Read more…] about Danceland at Manitou Beach

Elevate Your Spirit – Pillar Four (of four) Inspired by the Shin Dao Institute

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I had the honour and pleasure of being asked to write a series of articles for the Shin Dao Institute’s Heart and Mind Matters Newsletter in the fall of 2016. The fourth article is based on the fourth Pillar of the Shin Dao Philosophy – that of “Elevate Your Spirit”. In this article, I talk about – having a wild or domesticated spirit.

Are You Wild or Domesticated?
by Patricia L. Atchison (Heart and Mind Matters 12/13/2016)

Ah, the spirit. I’ve been thinking of my own definition of ‘spirit’ and what it means to ‘Elevate your Spirit’ (the last of the Four Guiding Pillars of the Shin Dao). A simple definition of Spirit by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary is:

•    the force within a person that is believed to give the body life, energy, and power
•    the inner quality or nature of a person
•    a person

I always think of horses when I think of a definition similar to the above. In central Alberta, by Sundre, we have wild horses. (Google: Wild Horses West of Sundre.) They roam free, unencumbered by fences and owners. I can feel their spirits soaring as they look over the foothills, their manes flowing and swaying with the breeze. They canter, gallop, and step freely in only a way that a wild horse can. (As a side note, biologist’s figure that the wild horses of Alberta were all once domesticated, but they have broken away from the herds.)

There are also domestic horses. Over the centuries horses have been trained and ‘broken’ to be work or entertaining animals. I’ve haven’t personally seen a horse ‘broke’ other than in a movie (or read about it in a book). What I’ve learned is that horses are worked around and around an arena or corral and motivated into relaxed movement that soon takes their ‘spirit’ and squelches it, molding it into a way that the animal will suit a particular job (etc.) per the owner’s needs.

So we have one horse, which is free to live with their spirit roaming wild, and another horse who has had their spirit tamped into a manageable focus. Do you see how this analogy above could be the same as our own lives?
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Open Your Heart Article – Pillar Three (of four) Inspired by the Shin Dao Institute

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I had the honour and pleasure of being asked to write a series of articles for the Shin Dao Institute’s Heart and Mind Matters Newsletter in the fall of 2016. The third article is based on the third Pillar of the Shin Dao Philosophy – that of “Open Your Heart”. This pillar is key to living your life with greater love and joy. In this article, I talk about – thinking with your heart or your head.

Thinking With Your Heart or Your Head
by Patricia L. Atchison (Heart and Mind Matters 12/06/2016)

I met a person several years ago, an acupuncturist, who I really feel saved my life. I was having so many issues and didn’t know where to turn. This person knew exactly what I needed, and especially what I needed to hear. The healing comments were sparse, but when they came, they were real zingers. They struck me to the core.

One such statement, after a brief conversation about my physical ailments and personal troubles was, “Ah, Patricia, always thinking with the heart and not the mind.”
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Inspire Your Mind Article – Pillar Two (of four) Inspired by the Shin Dao Institute

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I had the honour and pleasure of being asked to write a series of articles for the Shin Dao Institute’s Heart and Mind Matters Newsletter in the fall of 2016. The second article is based on the second Pillar of the Shin Dao Philosophy – that of “Inspire Your Mind”. In this article, I talk about – You Are What You Read.

You Are What You Read
by Patricia L. Atchison (Heart and Mind Matters 11/29/2016)

We have four separate, yet wholly sustaining entities, that make up our ‘selves ‘ or our ‘being’. You’ve no doubt heard about the Mind, Heart, Body and Spirit connections. All function as a whole, but are often separated as individual pieces in written articles, general topics of discussion, and courses that are offered everywhere, such as: Learn How to Open Your Heart; Listen to Body Wisdom; Gain Spiritual Growth; Mindfulness 101.

One of the guiding principles of the Shin Dao Institute is, “Inspire Your Mind”. An easy task, but what does “Inspire Your Mind” really mean?
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