Bedknobs, Broomsticks and Black Hats, Part I: Single House Seeking Positive Feng Shui

Gosh, it’s been ages since I said anything here. Life got really bumpy at the end of the school year, and I was treading water pretty frantically just to get through it. In the end, I survived another year as a preschool teacher’s assistant (my day job,) Dragon finished the sixth grade on a high note, and Peach ended her career at the elementary school by graduating from fourth grade. It was inauspicious in many ways, with two of us embroiled in high drama, and I was exhausted.

Thankfully, whether it ended the way I wanted it to or not, it’s behind us. Now I’m taking a lot of deep breaths, and the heavy sighs I kept hearing myself expel have subsided, for the most part. I keep repeating, “I rid myself of my doubts by remembering that there is a valid reason for everything that happens in my life,” (to quote Wayne Dyer in his Ah Sound Meditation for Manifesting) and I know that I’ll look back one day (hopefully sooner than later) and realize this is all stuff that needed to happen in order for us to move forward. Another affirmation in the Ah Sound Meditation states that, “No matter how much I protest, I am totally responsible for everything that happens to me in my life.” I buy that… but man, sometimes responsibility sucks! With that in mind, you might be wondering how (and why?) I brought such a deluge of chaos upon myself. I believe much of it was subconscious, originated out there in the spiritual stratosphere, but some of it might’ve been the direct result of my own actions (insert gasp!) Allow me to explain… bear with me, it will eventually come full circle, ha!

I’ve mentioned before that I have dabbled in Feng Shui, the ancient Chinese practice of arranging and orienting one’s environment to create positive energy flow and attract good fortune into one’s life. Until recently, this was purely a personal hobby that I pursued with a few books and some advice from a good friend who started exploring before I did. But I’d always wanted to get a real Feng Shui consultation done. I’d even spoken to a consultant a couple of years ago, and had saved up bonus and gift money in hopes of bringing that about. When I felt like I might be close to having enough, I did another search of consultants in my area. As you can imagine, it’s not exactly a flooded market. There are only three or four people practicing here, and I picked two to speak with, after reading reviews and looking at their websites. One was a phone conversation, the other a face-to-face meeting to determine if we were a good fit (she tells me not everyone is.) Then I chose between them, based solely on gut instinct and who ‘felt right’ to me.

The prices I’d been quoted ranged from $250 (a basic two-hour consultation with one follow-up call – I liked that she was also an architect) to $700, (involving astrology readings for the entire family AND the house, among other pluses – that was the guy I spoke with on the phone two years ago.) I really wanted that one – I mean, how fun to get your house’s astral chart, right? But it just seemed too costly for something my skeptical spouse was already decrying as a waste of money.

I opted to spend some cash and meet with Cyd Alper-Sedgwick, of Full Circle Feng Shui and Life Design, who boasted rave reviews and interior design experience, as well as a lifetime of FS practice (she lived in Asia as a child and grew up with a mother who practiced it in their home.) Cyd offered a four-session, in-home consultation of both house and property, a year’s worth of text/call/email advice, and a final blessing of the home at the end of the four sessions. We met for coffee, and we hit it off straight away. I got a good vibe from Cyd – she’s a wonderful listener and her wealth of knowledge and life experience comes through when you talk with her. She was also kind enough to work within my budget, as she believes everyone should be able to utilize the practice. She agreed to apply the initial meeting cost of $50 to my full price. I decided to go for it.