Judge the Book By Its Cover: A Feng Shui Principle

A few weeks ago, I bought a pair of adorable, expensive shoes. Shoes which I immediately realized I’d only wear for special occasions, nevertheless they more or less leapt into my hands. I bought them despite the cost and despite the rare occasions when I would need such a pair. Since then, I have found a couple of instances when they have been the perfect solution to an otherwise dull outfit. When not in use, they are stored in the box in which I bought them, prominently placed on my closet shelf. (An image of these fabulous shoes is below)

However, I discovered a surprising added benefit to those shoes, which has not only added enormously to the value of the shoes but to the pleasure of owning them. It is the box itself. It is beautifully decorated inside and out, advertisement-free, and has carrying straps. The side of the box slides out to display those marvelous shoes. In fact, I realized I love just opening the box, whether I’m going to wear the shoes or not. I have the same experience putting them away. I nestle them in the tissue paper, slide the box parts together, carry it by the color-coordinated straps to the closet shelf. A veritable shoe ritual.

I had a similar experience when I bought an expensive cashmere sweater once that came wrapped in tissue and tied with a ribbon, then placed in a special hand-made paper bag that was sized just for the sweater and tied again with matching ribbon. I went through the ritual of tying and untying ribbons for months until the bag literally fell apart.

Along this same vein, my editor Dorie and I took enormous care in designing the covers of my two Feng Shui books. There is no truth in what is said about not judging a book by its cover. She and I were determined to let the judging start the moment someone picked up the book. Similar to how I feel taking the box of shoes out of the closet or the sweater bag out of the drawer, I wanted people to have the same sense of excitement and anticipation as they picked up one of my books.

If there ever was a Feng Shui argument for making your front door appealing, this has to be it. The story of what lies behind the door (or in the box or in the bag or behind the cover page) begins before the door opens. It is a great opportunity to hint at the magnificence that is about to happen, and, in doing so, the hint becomes part of the magnificence itself.

Summer-Time Feng Shui

If it hasn’t happened already, school will be out soon. For some parents this means kids hanging around the house all day, kids getting bored, kids needing to be entertained, chauffeured, and accommodated. Rather than let this be a time of turmoil and anxiety, this is a good opportunity to incorporate some Feng Shui. Without the constraints of a school schedule, both parents and children could appropriately mark the passage of time in the child’s life by making corresponding changes in their bedroom.

Here are some questions to get the ball rolling:
Is their bedroom still age-appropriate? Summer vacation is a great time to acknowledge a passage in the child’s life. In a few months they will be heading into another level of education, taking on more responsibilities, taking another step closer to leaving the nest. Do they still have ducks on the wall? Is their comforter still covered with the images of toy trucks? Perhaps it’s time to mature the room a bit to help the child mature.

Is their bedroom conducive to good study habits? It is a parent’s responsibility to provide their child with a place to lay their heads at night. It is a parent’s gift to their child to provide them with the means of getting a good education. This message can be transmitted by making sure there is a place to study or at least a spot where they can pile their books, their back-pack or school bag. Whether they study there or not is not as important as the message about the option they have. And perhaps they will indeed find it a comfortable spot in which to crack the books.

Do they like their room? Over the summer invite your child to discuss what they like or dislike about their room. It might be solved with something as simple as a coat of paint. Some things may never be able to be changed, but sometimes an extra dresser for storage, or a different color comforter on the bed could make all the difference.

By making positive changes in a child’s life in their own personal space, positive changes can also be forthcoming in their lives as they return to school in the fall, older and better supported.

9 Steps to Feng Shui: The Cliff Notes Version

In response to people who are looking for a quick fix and who don’t know a lot about Feng Shui, I offer the following nine actions to take to bring about some difference in your life. You don’t have to do all nine steps---in fact, I discourage you from doing so. Start with the one or ones that speak to you, get clear about what kind of change you want to bring in so this activity isn’t done without a focus, and then see what Feng Shui can bring in.

1. Clear off all magnets, photos, and reminders from the front and sides of the refrigerator so you can cook in a calm environment thereby supplying you and your family with healthier food.
2. Paint your front door a different color from anything on your house so that there’s no confusion as to how good luck will find you.
3. Have a headboard on your bed to provide you the support and backing you need in your life.
4. Keep your windows clean to assure that your vision is clear and focused.
5. Take every item off the top of your dresser for nine days in order to experience spaciousness and calm. After nine days, be discerning about what you put back.
6. Close your closet doors at night so that your dreams are peaceful and pleasant.
7. To enhance your creativity and to get new ideas, re-arrange your furniture from time-to-time so you don’t always walk through your home in the same way.
8. Love the sound of your doorbell in order to eagerly open the door to new possibilities.
9. Make your bedroom your favorite room, providing a sanctuary from the rest of your day.

The Virtual Flow of Feng Shui: Tweets from the Universe

I’m taking a six-week course on social networking. I had a guarantee which would refund all my money if after the first week I didn’t find it helpful. On the contrary, I’ve found the information fascinating and exciting. Our discussions are about the endless virtual possibilities and how to access them. It would follow that the class itself is virtual. I sit home and stream the whole thing on-line on my computer.

For some of us who are familiar with the old business model of going somewhere to meet someone, engaging in face-to-face contact, joining a group that meets in a specific place on certain nights of the month, making cold-calls on someone who should buy our service/product, social networking is an entirely different paradigm. Despite what it may look like, this business model is friendlier and more people-based. Rather than doing business with someone first and possibly getting to be their friend later, social networking is based on being someone’s friend first---the business part comes later.

This is where social networking gets its bad name because on the outside it looks like all we’re doing is telling the world what we’re doing, what we had for dinner, where we’re heading for the afternoon---blah, blah, blah. It seems like inconsequential drivel, unworthy of my time. However, the valuable part of this is that someone is learning about me in small ways. They get to know a person----someone with whom they share the details of life, someone they can trust. They learn what makes me laugh and, in turn, what angers me. Once the trust has been secured, the relationship may move into the business arena. Virtual becomes profitable.

This internet world is provocative, vast and powerful. The opportunities to expand are infinite. It is Feng Shui in action in a whole new way----flow and movement transcending the physical space. This is not the time to be stagnant in any parts of life----our space, our actions, or our network. It’s the time to be in the flow.

Sweeping the Flow Under the Rug

I love when things just happen, especially when I’ve spent lots of energy trying to force it to happen. I had an experience in my dining room that exemplified to me the necessity to let stuff unfold in its own way.

Our cats access the back yard mainly through a sliding glass door going out from our dining room. Because they sometimes come in with wet little paws if it’s rained or there might have been some snow, I placed a rug there. I haven’t trained them to wipe their feet, but it did act as a slight buffer before they hit the rest of our hardwood floors. The rug disintegrated over time and I threw it out quite a while ago. That’s when the effort to find the right rug kicked in.

My argument was that it would visible from many angles of our house, so it had to be more than functional----it had to be Feng Shui perfect. It was important to find the right color to go with the dining room. I wanted it to be round if at all possible. Plus I didn’t want it to be so special (as in expensive) that having cats walk over it with wet, dirty paws would cause concern. Mind you, for years, we had a very unattractive woven thing laying there serving the purpose. I never liked it and took it away when company was coming. However, now I could put all that behind me and have an attractive rug with all the features mentioned above.

Over the last few months I found lots of rugs, tons of rugs, more than enough rugs to place in front of all our doors and more. But there was always something not quite right----color was off, too big, too small, too expensive. I’d come home empty-handed from various rug-shopping ventures, frustrated with not finding just the appropriate one. Then last weekend I went to visit my sister. She is the catalog queen, so during some down time during my visit I started looking through one of her cheesy little catalogs. What junk, I thought. What trivial nonsense. Who’d buy this crap? Wait, here’s my rug.

Sure enough, I found the perfect rug to put in front of the door—right color, size, design, price

($17). It came today and I put it in place. The cats love it (see photo of cats basking on new rug), I love it, proving once again if I didn’t try so hard, the thing I’m looking for will find me.