1. Rise with the sun to pray. Pray alone and often. The Great Spirit will listen only if you speak.

2. Be tolerant of the people who are lost on their path. Ignorance, jealousy, anger, and greed stem from a lost soul. Pray that they'll find guidance.

3. Search for yourself, by yourself. Don't allow others to create your path for you. It's your road and yours alone. Others might walk it with you, but nobody can walk it for you.

4. Treat your guests in your home with consideration. Serve them the best food, offer them your best bed and treat them with respect and honor.

5. Don't take what isn't yours either from a person, community or culture. It wasn't earned nor given. It isn't yours.

6. Respect every little thing placed upon the earth.

7. Honor other people’s thoughts, desires, and words. Let each person express themselves.

8. Never speak of others in a mean way. The negative energy you put out into the universe is going to multiply when it returns to you.

9. All people make mistakes. And all mistakes can be forgiven.

10. Negative thoughts cause illness of the mind, body, and soul. Practice optimism.

11. Nature is not FOR us, but a PART of us. Animals, plants and every other living creature are all part of our worldly family.

12. Children are the seeds of our future. You need to plant love in their hearts and shower them with wisdom and precious life’s lessons. When they're grown, give them space to mature.

13. Avoid hurting other people's heart. The poison of the pain you cause will return to you.

14. Be honest at all times. Honesty and truthfulness are the tests of one’s will within this world.

15. Keep yourself balanced. Work out the body to empower the mind. Grow rich in spirit to cure emotional pain.

16. Make conscious decisions regarding who you'll be and how you'll react. Be responsible for your actions.

17. Respect the privacy and personal space of those around you. Don't touch the personal property of others – especially holy and religious objects. That's forbidden.

18. Be true to yourself first. You can't nurture and help others unless you can nurture and help yourself first.

19. Respect others religious beliefs. Don't try to force your beliefs on other people.

20. Share your good fortune with others. Also, participate in charity.

I love making vision or visualization boards. I enjoy looking at and reminding myself  about my plans or goals. I started making vision boards several years ago and have found them so helpful. My vision board reflects what my intentions are and what I would like to see happen in my world. The boards change from year to year, and that's good. Our goals and purpose in life should not remain exactly the same. Flexibility and new learning in life are absolutely necessary.
The pictures below are some examples that I found on Pinterest, there are tons more on that site if you are looking for examples of what your vision board could look like. I hope you decide to give it a try and see how it works for you. 2018 is just around the corner...might be time to start thinking about your goals for the year.

 These messages can be so inspirational and uplifting. One option that I like when thinking about your vision and ideas is to create a beautiful binder which holds your vision, etc. This is portable and can go with you or be tucked away when you need privacy.

I have also used this idea when working with women's groups or at a gathering of friends. Let me know if you decide to give the vision board/binder idea a try, you could even share in the comments section. I would love to hear from you!
Have a great week.

October is one of my favorite months. For one thing, it falls on the best day, Halloween. I have always loved Halloween. I remember going out with my brothers and sisters with painted faces and a pillow case and running through the small community I live in and try to get as much candy as I can. My brothers and other boys used to push down the outhouses...lol. They were the talk of the town the next day. We would sometimes have to fight, with some other boys who showed up, so they wouldn't steal our candy. They would try to grab the pillow cases and we would swing them around and yell as loud as we could. Then we would run home. That day was fun and exciting and scary. I passed on my love of Halloween to my children and my grandchildren. My granddaughter already decorated the inside of my house!
October means beautiful fall days that smell so good. I love pumpkins and candied apples. Thanksgiving is also this month and I am already craving some turkey. This is also a sad time because this will be our first year we celebrate giving thanks without my mom being there. I don't celebrate the traditional thanksgiving because it wasn't great historically for Indigenous people in Canada but I do enjoy spending time with my family and giving thanks for our amazing life. I am going to give thanks for my mom. I love her and I miss her everyday.
I started writing ideas for self care a couple months ago. I think it's a great idea to remind us to take care of ourselves. I tried to include fun things that everyone could enjoy. You can save it on my facebook page "aspenroadresources-priscilla lalonde".

I started working with FCSS Slave Lake to co-facilitate "Anger Education" groups. I attended the facilitator's training along with a wonderful group of people who are interested in providing anger education. They have both women and men's groups happening each week for ten weeks. I wanted to share this information with you in case you know someone who might be interested in attending. The groups will begin again in January, 2018. There is time to call, ask questions and/or register for this next group coming up. The contact information is on the poster or you can e-mail me to find out more about referring someone to the groups. Thanks!

This week we had our spring storm, it snowed and snowed and snowed. It was so great, we stayed inside most of the time Netflixing, playing games and enjoying the break.

I was driving home from one of my many travels and noticed it was almost 9pm and it was still light outside. I love the longer days and soon the greenery that will suddenly appear. Spring brings with it the beginnings of light and growth into this world. So very grateful.

Love this cartoon......

My colleagues and friends, Collete Elko and Verna Wittigo, work in Health Promotion in High Prairie, Alberta. The week of May 1st-5th, 2017 is Mental Health Week. They are planning some sessions for that week and invited me to participate. I am so looking forward to this. I will be presenting a new workshop I developed called Health, Hope and Healing. It is about Mental Health but from a positive perspective. This is about what helps a person and the strategies that might be beneficial.
I am working on some positive workshops and I am pleased to say that this will be one of them. Once I have piloted this workshop a couple of times. I will be offering to the public on a regular basis...yay!

CMHA-Edmonton Region has some workshops that I will be facilitating this spring. The first, in a series of three, is a workshop called Little Cub. If you work with Indigenous children, this is the workshop for you. Please go to the CMHA Edmonton Region website to register. Thanks!!

Little Cub is a 1-day, discussion-based workshop examining suicide prevention in Indigenous children and communities.

The Little Cub Workshop draws heavily on storytelling and oral tradition. It begins by recognizing the unique precipitating factors of suicide in Indigenous communities and moves through to identifying risk and protective factors in children 12 years of age and younger. The workshop finishes by empowering participants with knowledge and tools to transfer the care of a child at risk of suicide to a community-based resource person.

It is recommended that participants of this workshop also attend the 2-day ASIST workshop for skills-based suicide intervention training.

Workshop Topics include:

• Story of Indigenous Experiences
• Conversations and Understanding
• Protective and Risk Factors
  
• Responding with Hope
  
• Understanding More
  

AudienceAges 18+
This workshop provides information and offers practical approaches for those working with Indigenous children who may be at risk of suicide. The precipitating factors of suicide are different in Indigenous communities than in the general population.

Information provided is appropriate for beginner and intermediate social work practice.

Certificate

All participants will receive a participation certificate upon completing 7 hours of instruction.

Workshop Dates
April 18, 2017, 8:30 AM-4:30 PM

Fee
$175.00 per person

I found this article "10 mindsets that will help you become successful" by Ludovica Tronci and it makes great sense to me. I believe the way we see ourselves and our ability to cope in a healthy way makes all the difference. I hope they make sense to you too....enjoy.

1. Take Risks
No one succeeds by just staying cozy in their own comfort zone. Be brave, stand up for what you believe in and take risks when you need to.

2. Set Your Goals And Act With A Purpose
Once you know what the ending result is and what you’re working for, remember to always act with a purpose. Once you have a clear vision of your goals it is easier to stay focused.

3. Choose Courage
Always choose courage over fear. You don’t know what you’re really capable of if you constantly refrain yourself and set your own boundaries.

4. Don’t Mind The Others
Everybody is walking their own path at their own pace. Don’t think about what the others are achieving, and why they’re achieving it earlier than you. Focus on yourself instead and put all your determination into your project.

5. Choose Good Company
Surround yourself with successful and ambitious people that share your same mindsets. They can only lift you higher.

6. Don’t Panic
No one truly knows what they’re capable of, nonetheless, they try and give it a shot. No one really knows their ceiling so if you think you’ve set the bar too high, don’t panic about it but instead prove everyone (yourself included) wrong.

7. Do The Right Thing
Success is not really about doing every single thing right but instead, it’s about doing the right thing. Choose an area of focus, work hard on getting results and don’t think about the rest. Not everything has to be perfect.

8. Fake It ‘Til You Make It
Confidence is always a good choice. Be proud of your choices, think big and one-day success will knock on your door. But first, you have to believe in what you’re doing.

9. Choose What Matters To You
Success requires dedication so once you’ve set your goals, dedicate to them all the time needed. It’s certainly not going to be easy at the beginning and you will have to make sacrifices but it will all be worth it.

10. Be Grateful
Gratitude is what will bring you far in life. When you’re upset and are not achieving a result, look back at your past and think about all you’ve done to be in the position that you’re in. Be positive, proud of your choices and grateful.