Entering The Holiday Season
Editorial By Kathy Bibeau

As we enter the Holiday Season The American Spirit Newspaper turns its attention to the Spirit of the Holidays. The Holidays are a magical time. There are the outward celebrations, full of food, gifts and companionship that begin with Halloween and end with the New Year. And then there are the inward celebrations as the Holidays encourage us to reflect, count our blessings and celebrate our accomplishments with one another as we look toward a new year.

In this issue of the American Spirit Newspaper you will find articles that address this special spirit of the Holidays. In the spirit of Halloween we have created a column entitled “Real Life Ghost Stories”, where ordinary people share their extraordinary encounters with ghosts. You may even find, upon reading their stories, that you have a story yourself, and that you simply didn’t recognize your experience as a ghostly encounter at the time.

In honor of Thanksgiving, we have dedicated this issue of the American Spirit Newspaper to the topic of what happens when you count your blessings. The first American settlers recognized the importance of counting their blessings and being thankful for their new homeland and the plenty they enjoyed. They knew intuitively that if they blessed what they had more would be given to them. Fortunately for us, that tradition has been carried on with us today with our celebration of Thanksgiving. It is also a principle upon which this great country is founded and which we honor with the American Spirit Newspaper. However, unfortunately it is not uncommon for people to have lost sight of the spirit behind Thanksgiving. We may love the turkey dinner but forget the reason why we are sitting down with family to enjoy it. For that reason we hope with this issue to remind you of the power of Thanksgiving so that you may get the most out of this Holiday Season.

There is something transformational about counting our blessings. When we put forth positive vibrations into our atmosphere by blessing and being grateful for what we already have in our life, this attracts more of the same. Conversely, when we complain and focus on the negative, on what we lack or on what we find problematic, we put forth negative vibrations into our atmosphere and this attracts more of the same. In fact, the universe is a neutral agent in that it gives us what we energize the most, regardless of the polarity.

Most of us are familiar with the stories of people who experienced what appeared to be miraculous good fortune or healing when others prayed for them, or otherwise projected positive vibrations in their direction. In fact, scientific studies have been conducted which have documented the fact that prayers (or blessings) do increase the likelihood of a person healing from illness. Likewise, you hear stories of people who overcame incredible hardship to accomplish great feats by holding a positive attitude and believing in themselves rather than succumbing to their outer circumstances. Their stories demonstrate that we can take that neutral energy of the universe and mold it into something great by using our mind correctly and counting our blessings. As the saying goes, “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”

In the article by Debi Livingston, BCH, CI you will learn how hypnosis works in helping to clear out the negative subconscious patterns that cause us to complain, or look at the cup as half empty rather than as half full, in favor of more positive responses to life’s challenges. And for those of you who are blessed to have animal companions in your life, there is an article by Ann Savino on how to communicate more effectively with animals so that you can experience an even greater rapport.

The Holidays (which actually means “Holy Days”) are upon us. How do you want to experience this Holiday Season? Wouldn’t it be nice to be in the Spirit, and to enjoy this Holiday Season to the fullest? Once again, it is our hope and prayer that what you receive from this publication will help you in your journey to experiencing a more fulfilling life beginning with today.