Chapter 7 Dahlia woke up slowly,
Yawning and stretching her body in the bed,
Moving from side to side,
Wiggling her toes,
Arching and bending her back and her shoulders,
And then relaxing back into the warm softness with a rich sigh of satisfaction.
Today is my birthday,
She thought with a smile.
What a year this has been!
Hearing the sounds of her roommate making breakfast in the kitchen,
Dahlia resisted the urge to jump up and go join her.
Instead,
She closed her eyes to set her energetic path for the day ahead.
This was one of her favorite practices that had evolved through the yoga training and her immersion into the world of energy and mindfulness in her yoga community.
Eyes closed,
She activated her third eye lens and saw the silhouette of her body projected on the empty space of her mind's eye.
Watching her form move through her morning routine,
Replying to messages on her phone,
Laughing over breakfast with Laura,
Riding her bicycle along the country roads to town where she worked at the local restaurant so popular with tourists.
She could feel in her imaginary prelude to this day the love and genuine care surrounding her from her friends at the restaurant and the guests moving in and out,
Celebrating with her in her joy.
After finishing her shift,
She watched her form in her mind's eye walk over to the yoga studio and prepare to teach her two afternoon classes,
Both full of clients happy to be in the spaces she was holding and the yoga therapy their bodies experienced with Dahlia's guidance.
Hot,
Sweaty,
Already feeling her body's satisfaction at two challenging workouts,
She watched herself ride her bike back home to find their small rental home already filling up with their friends coming to celebrate her birthday.
This is where Dahlia stopped her visualization process,
Knowing the night would be beautiful and amazing,
And also wanting the element of surprise to delight her instead of knowing in the morning how the day would already end.
Opening her eyes,
Exhaling with anticipation,
She sat up,
Swung her legs around to land them on the floor,
Offering a heartfelt thank you as she then stood up.
Today is my day to create magic,
And I am so grateful to be here now.
Walking over to her bedroom door,
She opened it and looked across the room to the kitchen.
As Laura looked up and they made eye contact,
They both started laughing with excitement.
Laura ran over to hug Dahlia tightly,
Jumping up and down as she held her,
Giggling and talking so quickly.
Today is your day,
Beautiful!
Number 26!
It is time!
This is when the magic amps up!
You already know,
Today is the day!
They both started laughing together,
Feeling the love and energy flooding their bodies in the way that had been happening since they met on the first day of teacher training last year.
Come sit down,
I already have your favorites prepared for you,
Laura said,
Holding tightly onto Dahlia as she walked her over to the barstool at the counter.
Dahlia noticed the fresh flowers sitting in the vase with the two placemats side by side,
What looked like freshly squeezed orange juice in their cups,
And all the scents from the kitchen that were flowing into her nose as she sat down,
Onions,
Garlic,
Tomato sautéing,
Her mouth started to water.
She could see the eggs,
Almost perfectly prepared in the saucepan,
And heard the toaster pop.
She already knew that her favorite whole grain bread would be there,
Picked up last night from Laura on her way home from work.
Dahlia smiled from the depths of her soul as she watched Laura moving around the kitchen,
Still talking a mile a minute,
Telling her about the timing of plans for their friends for tonight's party.
How did I live for 25 years without you?
She said out loud.
Laura turned from the stove to grin at Dahlia and said,
I really don't know,
Babe,
With a laugh.
But that chapter of your journey is complete,
So let's focus on what we're co-creating together next.
Already hearing the buzz of her phone as the alerts for messages started arriving,
Dahlia brought her attention fully into her heart space.
Feeling her feet resting on the ledge of the barstool,
She allowed her physical senses to fully take in every detail of this moment.
I created this magic in my life,
She thought.
I magnetized this beautiful human into my everyday existence with all of her joy,
Wisdom,
And care.
I created this home for us,
And I'm continually being blessed with the abundance to stay here,
To relax into the safety here.
While she could feel the pangs of homesickness for her family that sometimes still surprised her,
She could also feel how centered and steady and more able to be present she was in this location of the planet.
Looking out the window while Laura kept chattering,
Dahlia saw the brilliant blue sky and how it flowed into the greens and yellows of the fields to the left of their home.
There was a gentle breeze moving the plant life,
And through the open window screen,
Dahlia could hear the voices of the children in their neighborhood already laughing and calling to each other as they started their play outside.
This experience of being a human now,
The soul inside the human body living on Earth,
This was so far removed from the experience that she had lived for the first 25 years of her life.
Being in this vibration,
This peacefulness,
This frequency,
It was hard for her mind to reconcile how she had ever functioned well in Romania.
It felt energetically as if Romania had a shroud of gray over her memories to illustrate the fear and poverty mindset that was collectively created in that area of the world.
While the economics seemed very similar between the two countries,
As she reflected in the moment,
It was the belief system or perspective,
The lens through which the humans in each region choose to experience their days,
That made the two countries so dramatically different.
Deeply grateful again to be in this reality as she started her 26th birthday,
Dahlia picked up her glass to take a sip of her orange juice and brought her attention back to Laura's voice.
You can be home by 6pm,
Right Dahlia?
She heard Laura ask.
Without waiting for an answer,
Laura continued describing the foods that each of their friends had offered to bring to contribute to the birthday feast.
Knowing that love was going to carry her with grace and ease through every moment in this beautiful day ahead,
Dahlia leaned back in the barstool,
Yawned,
And smiled.
This was the first day of the year that would define not only her future,
But the future of humanity.
Her body felt strong and in flow energetically,
Her mind was clear and laser sharp in awareness,
Her heart was warm,
Relaxed,
And open.
And her soul was already guiding her forward as the plan continued to clarify.
Picking up her fork as Laura placed the food on their plates,
Dahlia smiled in gratitude and offered a blessing for the new day ahead.
