Day 4 - Silver RavenWolf's 2012 Great Release Challenge

Today is Day 4 of the Great Release Challenge. For those of you who do not know me, this is a very difficult time in any task for me. This is usually the day that I end up missing or skipping completely. Once that happens, I usually do not end up continuing with whatever it is that I am trying to do.

I am not really sure what it is about Day 4 of anything. All I know is the reason I feel it is so hard to get back into it. I sit here and punish myself and get depressed about not completing the days tasks. After I break that rhythm, it is nearly impossible to get it back.

I'm proud to say that I broke the Day 4 rut today! Even though it was very late and I am posting after midnight, I did manage to do today's task. Thank goodness it wasn't too difficult. Today was the day for cleaning out junk drawers! I have a couple of them, but one is the worst of all and I chose to clean it out.

The reason I say it was easy is most of the stuff was paper. Old bills, receipts from stores, old manuals for things that I no longer need. I got rid of it all. The drawer did have a few things that are craft related and for my children, so I left those. I will try to make that drawer the permanent craft drawer by the end of this challenge.

I could not do the extra credit, but I'm happy to have completed the main tasks for today. I believe the morning Braucherei Ritual is what has helped me carry on and break the cycle. It makes me feel empowered, as if I can do anything. And, of course, I can do anything! Thanks to the Goddess and the Lord of the Day, Mars for Tuesday, for carrying me through. Thanks to you Silver for posting this Challenge. And, thanks to everyone else for your great comments and support.

Oh, Also - My son Lucien Bailey has dental surgery tomorrow morning. Please send any healing and blessings to him if you are able! Thanks again!

Day 3 - Silver RavenWolf's 2012 Great Release Challenge

Blessed Goddess Divine and Moon, Lord of the Day, Thank you for granting me such great blessing today! I do not have to see them all to know they have been granted, and I truly appreciate each and every one!

Today was a semi-successful day in the Great Release Challenge. My son had a pre-op assessment today for dental work he is having done on Wednesday so that took up quite a bit of the day (hospital is about an hour drive each way!)

I started off the morning with the Braucherei ritual which is working wonders for my energy. I have noticed after the ritual, I am ready to go no matter what I choose to put that energy toward! I had some work to do this morning before going to the appointment. I checked the oil in my car, definitely needed to be done forever ago. I created my daily to-do list for things not related to the challenge. I stay so unorganized most of the time that if I do not have a list, I forget everything I swear. So that happens no more!

I am focusing this challenge on my hoarding behavior and getting rid of the junk I have collected over time. Today I did manage to clean the door (as a matter of fact, the entire entrance way;  it is like a foyer I think.) I dusted all the walls, the front door and the closet door in the foyer. I also used the lemon water to wash the doors, walls and trim. I extended the cleaning to the front porch and washed it down with lemon water as well. Not only does it look much better, but it also smells lemony fresh!

Not very long ago, I noticed my curtains were horribly covered with dust. I had a great idea to use a lint roller all over them and it totally worked to get all the dust off them and the walls around the windows. Since this was recent, I am counting it toward today's goals as they do not need redone yet.

As I was cleaning I did the evil be gone chant and envisioned my guardians with me while I worked. This made the task much easier. After posting this I will be performing the Sea of Affirmations chant as I seem to be coming down with a little cold. I do not want it to get worse.

Tomorrow is another day, and I expect to be much more productive! I am still working to complete a few of my work projects. Thanks again to Silver RavenWolf for posting the Challenge!

2012 Release Challenge Wishlist

These are the things that I wish to complete by month's end. I will be updating this post as necessary when I have completed things or when I need to add to the list.

I know I will complete this list and meet my other goals during this program!

1) Clean up  under table next to me. (Done)
2) Clean up under the tv.
3) Take Lucien's little bed downstairs.
4) Rearrange Lucien's room.
5) Clean out closet in Trinity's room.
6) Move Sherry's stuff to the garage to store until she comes to get it.
7) Clean up downstairs in the main room.
8) Rearrange downstairs.
9) Make a coupon folder and mail folder.
10) Start making to-do list every day. (Starting this 12-3)

Day 2 Silver Ravenwolf's 2012 Release Challenge

Hello Everyone! Today (12/2) was Day 2 of the Release Challenge from Silver Ravenwolf. If you haven't already, go to one of the links and check out her blog to see what it's all about! If you've been following along, you already know that each day starts with the morning Braucherei Ritual. This is basically two chants and an "I know" statement. The chants are repeated 9 times as that is a power number that helps the words manifest. The "I know" statement is more of an affirmation that you are stating to make it so. If you truly believe in your words and you focus that energy on them, they will manifest in your life! I know this because it has already started working for me. *Update* My wishlist is now posted and can be seen here!

Todays goal continues on from yesterdays goal which you can read about here. Today was all about getting rid of the dirt, dust and grime. Yesterday we put the clutter in its place so we would have room to work today. I am happy to report that I had another successful day today! I will be posting a pic at some point, but for now, let's just say I tackled the kids bedroom. Here is the before pic:

Now, in general, I have my children keep up on their rooms themselves. We use this great free program called "My Job Chart" to keep them motivated to do their chores with the great reward system the program offers. Needless to say we have all gotten a little lazy for a while now. I had the children help me, and my loving wife Linda helped me as well today! Normally, she does the regular household cleaning due to my pretty much constant flow of online work from Elance. When I am busy with projects, she will keep the house clean and cook for the family. She is so great, and I love her very much.

One of the main reasons I am participating in this program is that I want to change my behavior so that I will be a better wife to Linda. She works so hard to keep the house clean only to have my overflow of junk get in her way and create more work for her. I want to get control over my hoarding of papers and stuff so that I can give her a break and really prove that I want to change this for her, even though she says it really isn't that bad. To me it is bad.

So, we started out in the basement. Right now we have our year old pit bull Maddie down there because she is due to have puppies, we think, any time now. I clean up after her messes for the most part. She has been getting into some paper and stuff that a previous roommate left down there. She has never come back to get her stuff so we try to keep it put up the best we can, but it really isn't our responsibility anymore now that it has been over 7 months since she left.

Maddie is nesting and started digging some holes in one of our extra beds we have down there. This stuff was all over the place today! Anyway, we went down and I helped Linda by putting the bed up on it's side so she can't get on it anymore, and she cleaned up the torn up stuffing and papers and such. I came back up and had some work to get done, so the cleaning was put on hold for a little while.

Later, after the kids were home from their daddy's house, I tackled that bedroom. This is just a start as I have many things to do in that room on my wishlist. I cleaned up the area that is shown i that picture, had to do a quick thing by putting it all in a bag for now. All the clothes were picked up and put away as were the toys. The kids helped me with this of course! Don't worry though, I know the rules of the program, and I kind of had to adapt this one myself though. That bag will be gone through by the end of the week! NO EXCEPTIONS!

So, after getting the mess out of the way, I began following today's work. I envisioned my Guardians with me as I swept and rid the room of the dust bunnies. Linda had already done this in the living room and kitchen. She is not participating, but she is very supportive!

This is a dust bunny I drew a very long time ago using Paint LOL!

I made my shaker out of an old coffee can, some rice, and sage and some other dried herbs from a ritual I attended for Samhain. I did not get to do the holy water and candle part today, but I do plan to complete this part tomorrow! I am making every effort to complete everything even if I run a little late on it. I am very motivated, but with work, sometimes it just is not possible to do all the steps even if I really want to.

My son was not interested at all in my shaker; he covered his ears LOL. My daughter liked the chant. She understood how I explained to her about chanting and give words the power to manifest to make things so. She thought it was cool, and coming from a 10 year old, I'm impressed!

So, today was full of blessings and good tidings. I can't wait to see what is in store for tomorrow! Please feel free to leave a comment on how your Release Challenge is going!

Day 1 of Silver RavenWolf's 2012 Great Release Challenge!

Hello Everyone! Welcome to Rowynyew's Attempt to Blog!

Today I am starting something very exciting. I have decided I am going to release the clutter from my life and change my ways. I no longer wish to be a messy hoarder, and I know I can stop "collecting" junk I do not need. Silver RavenWolf, famous Author of many books for Llewellyn World Wide and tradition head of the Black Forest Clan, announced the 2012 Great Release on her Author blog The Crow at the Crossroads recently. I thought this was a great idea and a great jump start for me to take action. You can find the specifics of the challenge here if you would like more information or to participate yourself.

Today is Day 1.
Goals of today: Clear the clutter and make a wishlist.

Each day starts off with a morning ritual where you go to a quiet place where you will not be disturbed and do a simple chant to draw power from the Earth, the Goddess and the Lord of the Day. These ruling Deities will give you the blessings you ask for, you just have to "know" that this is so.

My statement beginning with I know is: I know I will rid myself of my hoarding ways and clear out the things I have collected which I no longer need within the 31 days of this challenge.

It is very important to make an "I know" statement. By stating that you know something is so, you give it the power to manifest. You can find more on the morning ritual and the "I know" statement on Silver RavenWolf's blog on this page.

Clearing the clutter - this is basically just going through every room in your home and putting everything in its proper place. You are supposed to go through each room and straighten the room up, making a path in the room and putting everything where it goes in preparation for the challenges of the days to come. You cannot clean a room if there isn't even a path to walk through it. Energy cannot flow through the room in an effective way it the path is blocked by trash or stuff.

Make a wishlist - The wishlist is very important as it is the list of things you want to get done in the days of this challenge. Maybe you have some projects you have never gotten around to finishing? Things like that should be added to your list. Also, as you are walking through the rooms and straightening them you may discover things you will need to do to further you ability to complete your daily goals. Add them to the list as well.

My results from today:

Starting with this mornings ritual I realized something; I truly believe I can change the behavior that I have wanted to change for so long. I feel empowered by the chants! I immediately went to work. The rooms were already clear as they are the children's rooms, and we try to have them keep their areas clean. So, I focused on starting my wishlist. I will post that in a separate post so that I can add and mark things off as time goes on. *Update* Wishlist is now posted here!

After creating my wishlist, I decided today's task would be under my end table. I will need to clear off the top of it as well, but underneath is a sad, sad place right now. Recently, I just keep putting more and more junk down there and cover it up with a blanket so the world, and those who live here, won't see it. This is horrible. Until now, I have wanted to clean it up but lacked the necessary motivation. Now this changes. I will do it. And I did! I am happy to report I have cleared underneath the table aside from 3 things, a small box to keep my bills in, a toolbag, and a laptop bag that has a few things inside it right now. I feel very excited, and I can't wait to do more tomorrow!

End Table Before

End Table After

I call this my 31-Day Life Renewal Program, and using Silver RavenWolf's instruction as guidance, I know I can accomplish these life-changing goals. I encourage you all to participate as this can change your life too!