Introducing: The Miracle Diamond

Scroll down ☞ Mindful Walking Tips update 9/1/11

I assure you, that Thomas Carlyle's wise words "No pressure, no diamonds." was heartfelt in this short youtube presentation.
Thank you for joining us practice being in the "Eye of the Storm."

The simplest and most meaningful idea to me is,
the miracle is a sign that the mind has
chosen to be led by Love. Dr. Sheryl Valentine, Author, Chiropractor

I am delighted to present this impromptu youtube video of Grace and I sharing my mentor/friend, Helen Fleder's masterpiece and priceless treasure,
"The Miracle Diamond."
This is the final segment from our Triple L,
Love, Luck, & Laughter "lunch bunch" talk.

There are many meanings of the word "Miracle". One meaning is "that which is divinely natural but must be learned humanly." According to the self-study curriculum, A Course in Miracles; "A miracle is a shift in perception from fear to love." I contribute that miracles happen when we shift our posture from gloom (slouch) to bloom (stretch).

Our inner dancer knows that when the body lifts, the mind shifts and the spirit soars.

"If you concentrate on breathing and posture, the attitude of mind automatically comes
right and wisdom is manifested unconsciously." Zen Master, Taisen Deshimaru

The simple zen soulution of Getting Centered with Mindful Breath Alignment is the most passionate and practical message that I'm delighted to share with you. My own personal struggle with dancing in pointe slippers and learning to surrender with non resistance to reach inner harmony, has been a hard earned and poignant life learned lesson.
My journey of over 25 years has led me to this point.

The Miracle Diamond is an effortless approach to standing upright in balance to defy gravity. When we are out of alignment, we have to fight gravity, thus feeling out of sync and uptight. This is called resistance. We are working harder, not smarter, with growing frustration and failure. The brilliance of The Miracle Diamond is in it's simplicity. It gently reminds us to to be posture aware and straighten-up. We joyously discover how to both rely on gravity for structural balance and defy it to elongate our spine. The best part is that it's a beyond pilates, portable workout.
You can feel elegant and confident like a dancer at anytime, anywhere, and at any age.

The body is a sacred garment...and it should be treated with honor. Martha Graham

Artist, Dancer and Author, Helen Fleder has studied with 2 legendary names in the dance world, Martha Graham and George Balanchine (in picture). She created this supernatural, portable dancers workout that helps us become tall, light and firm. Using Helen's diamond shape ♢ imagery, with repetition activates our muscle memory. By grounding our spirit, we learn to take root and fly with her skillful instructions "lifting up gets you there" and "lacing up keeps you there"

I am a cloud – in trousers. ~ George Balanchine ~


"Exercise is only as beneficial as the posture in which it is performed." Best-selling Author, Dan Millman

Without further ado, absorb what is useful. Give yourself the experience of being magically upright by using The Miracle Diamond. If I would have had this awesome posture tool a few years ago when I was asked to dance in a European Ballet Company, (Royal Ballet of Flanders, Belgium) I wouldn't be here today. Actually, sharing these enlightened living tools, to find balance in the dance of life, keeps me on pointe and is far more meaningful to me. Thank you profusely for reading this blog and for helping us make a positive difference one person at a time.

Update: 1/27/17 -Learn more about The Miracle Diamond of Mindfulness- Mindful Posture Tool 

Check out Helen Fleder's new book "Shape Up!!"

Teaching Kids FunZen and Parents

to be Mindful.

"As parents, then, what we teach our children is no different from what we must

keep teaching ourselves." Deepak Chopra

The Miracle Diamond (mindful breath alignment tool) helps us train our bodies to feel magically upright by feeling embraced and uplifted. This awesome tall, light and firmed-up feeling of good alignment also applies to sitting, lying down, standing, and walking. The supporting power of our lower abdomen (hara) and pelvic muscles responsible for balance (stabilization) and control naturally come into play as we breathe into and from our center or core. Consider, with this awesome posture tool you'll instantly feel a confident boost.

*I personally want to thank my dear mentor, mommy friend Vicki Kirschenbaum for helping me tap into my confident swagger (lol) in presenting The Miracle Diamond.

For teaching kids FunZen please click here Magic Mood Tools

Miracle Diamond Pointers for Mindful Walking

"People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child -- our own two eyes. All is a miracle." Thich Nhat Hanh

Inspirational Recipe:

Walk Our Talk Trail Mix (photo Martha Stewart)

Miracle Diamond Heart & Soul Steps

♦ Exhale, (whoosh) press your zen button to mentally reboot, relaxing into the precious present to re-focus. Inhale fresh energy or imagine drawing in a lovely lavender scent. Allow your breath to flow in and out through your nose and mouth as you establish your own pace of grace.

♦ Take your time...gradually extend your exhalation, Just say Ahhhh (long breath out) which helps you activate both your diamond core and quiet strength of non resistance.

Consider YES rhymes with both bless and stress. By simply learning to say yes to stress, you can dismiss any resistance and affirm I am too blessed to be stressed.

i.e. A bit of gratitude can go a long way, especially when we get easily bothered. Instead, of reacting negatively we can remember to feel grateful for the situation. This mindful approach gently reminds us to say yes and feel less stressed. Now, we can nonjudgmentally return to the simple truth of our breath to ground and center us in the moment.

♦ Taking one Mindful Breath and Step at a time helps us shift from a worrier to a warrior with present moment awareness. As we learn from practice, using our miracle diamond posture tool helps us to experience this essential element of love...☞Love truly embraces & lifts us up.

♦ Once we are uplifted it is easier to open our heart wings and see the world in a whole new light.

For more insightful instruction visit Blog "Angels Fly Because They Take Themselves Lightly" (scroll down a bit to zen upliftment recipe and click here for ☞ Mindful Breath Mood Tool Tip

❧In the words of Toni Morrison, "If you surrender to the air you can ride."

Zenjoy your Journey!

Please visit any earlier Blog ☜ click here for sweet smells of

shal-om bakery air, free smiles, food for thought;

Inspirational Recipes, Mindful Moments, and Mental Fitness ordering information.

Life Coaching...questions, comments, praise, and suggestions

are always welcome. Remember, Your childhood must never end;

Fun never ends, FunZen is for everyone.

I teach kids FunZen and parents to be Mindful.

In Gratitude w/Love & Hugs ❤

FunZen Girls OX

Michiko (lil mama) and Grace

Contact: (805) 490-2391 Twitter: @Zenmommie Email: mjrolek@aol.com

Make, Bake and Decorate at the FunZen Bakery

"Words are like a recipe's ingredients for me." ~ Nicola Karesh, Author

One of my favorite things about the FunZen Bakery is that parents and kids--in fact anyone--can benefit from picking up our sweet treats to restore character and build confidence. However, our recipes aren’t locked away in a secret treasure chest. We love sharing everything on our menu…along with their very special ingredients and simple instructions for preparation.

You just need to Make, Bake and Decorate.

Make: up your mind to engage and take action.
Bake: to maintain the heat of your concentration power.
Decorate: and magically create your day, your way.

Today’s special treat will be a revitalizing exercise I call the “Morning Glory Cupcake.”

At its very heart, the "Morning Glory Cupcake" gives us special nourishment for the soul that has at its core an expression near to my heart: “Go within or Go without.”

This short maxim basically means that when you look inward towards stillness, you will find your life lesson. Ignoring the inner stillness, and focusing on the storm around you, can cause you to miss out on a blessing. An incident that happened recently led to my stepping inside the FunZen Bakery to use this inspirational recipe myself.

Earlier this year, I received a tweet from a man who expressed disapproval with the idea of FunZen when I used it in conjunction with the Heraclitus quote, "Man is most nearly himself when he achieves the seriousness of a child at play."

The man wasn't’ buying it. He firmly stated that, to him, "FunZen was just New Age mumbo jumbo..." At first, reading his tweet didn't’ just catch me off-guard; it stung me. My initial reaction was to feel insulted… But I took a mindful breath and centered and refocused myself. My inner samurai girl went from reactive to reflective as I reminded myself to choose to detach from negativity. I recalled my life lessons and past teachings which made his words empower me with self-love rather than hurt me emotionally. Getting mad would serve no purpose. I re-tweeted the man and explained that FunZen came from the mouth of a babe, my daughter Grace at 5 years old. It was her name for the breathing and centering exercises that we still practice together everyday.

After telling him about the origins of FunZen, the man said that he now had a new-found respect for it, and acknowledged its usefulness. By not sinking to his level of antagonism, I was able to bring him onboard. It was like a breath of fresh air to see my fellow tweep now shift his perspective. And by going within, and listening to my heart, I was able to make art and communicate with compassion when things seemed to be falling apart. It’s something we can all do: Rather than be reactive when life throws you a curve ball, use your spiritual perspective to gain insight and learn from the issue at hand.

Truly, you can reach the sweet spot of "blessed aha's" with an instant understanding when you are able to see a situation with new eyes. I see this all the time through the eyes of my daughter. FunZen has emerged as a professional tool for Grace as she continues to work as a voice-over artist, and it consistently ignites brilliant performances from within her.

There are many of these exercises on the menu here at the FunZen Bakery, and over time I will be sharing them with you. Some of the centering exercises that have worked like a charm to enable Grace to activate a happy-calm state of concentration are "The Miracle Diamond Lemon Bars,” “Mermaid Starfish Cookies” and “Angel food Cupcakes.”

In future blogs, we'll be serving up more "you-nique ingredients for the Magic of Mindful Living. I will detail each of these exercises (and many more!) so that others may gain the inner peace, courage and confidence that come from using them. At 12 years of age, Grace continues to use these "cool tools" while incorporating FunZen into her everyday life.

Now, let's roll up our sleeves, and take a mindful breath, as I offer you today’s special of the day from the FunZen Bakery--the “Morning Glory Cupcake.”

I find that it’s a holistic tune-up in the morning to start your day…or anytime you need some inspirational “food for thought.” It's all good. It's organic.

The Morning Glory Cupcake

Follow your heart in 3 quick steps as you Make, Bake and Decorate:

Make: Whooshhh… Slowly exhale, quieting down from within. Now, pixie pause.

Bake: Look inward, visualize still water… Then, intently inhale inspiration.

Decorate: Slowly exhale… Ahhhh… Listen to your seawind breathing. Here’s where insights arise out of the stillness and the golden sound of silence.

Repeat as needed…

You can now tune in to the wisdom that always resides in your heart, enabling you to turn any obstacle into a learning opportunity. Thank you for joining us and engaging in today’s FunZen Bakery’s interactive recipe. We’re always here to Make, Bake and Decorate delicious little nuggets of fresh insights.

P.S. Look at the photo above, and guess who said this. "I have been teaching the art of fine baking for a long time!” Hint: She's a domestic goddess media mogul. Yes, kudos to Martha Stewart.