I am grateful for my healthy heart!

Today I walked with hundreds of others in support of the American Heart Association in the annual Heart Walk. What an honor that was to walk on behalf of my late husband, Lee Oberbeck, who died of a heart attack back in 2001.

My heart, and the gratitude I feel for my healthy heart, is becoming a new focus lately. This past Summer I was approached by Connie Hara, from the American Heart Association (AHA), to help with a luncheon this coming year. She was referred to me by a mutual friend who thought I would have an interest. When we met I was too busy to commit but I knew I wanted to work with Connie at some point.

Weeks later I was conceiving of an idea for a project I wanted to create as a result of a Landmark Education course I am taking called the Self Expression and Leadership Program. My idea was to educate people, particularly REALTORS since I used to be one, of the warning signs of heart disease and stroke. My Mother had died of the result of a dibilitating stroke and as I mentioned I lost my husband to a heart attack. I thought of Connie, called her and we discussed my idea. She said my idea sounds like it would work beautifully with the AMA Go Red for Women Ambassador's program She said all that was needed was a leader and a structure.

WOW! I found my project and a way to work with Connie Hara all in one neat package!

More to come as I share the Go Red for Women Ambassador's Program, and what they are up to, in my next update.

Be kind to yourself and your heart!

With love and gratitude,

Dyann

Grateful for Landmark Education

After many years of being a student of personal growth I finally went to a Landmark Forum introduction in March of 2009 with some dear friends who are Landmark graduates. Little did I know that my life was about to change in many unexpected and wonderful ways!

In the Landmark Forum, which is a three and 1/2 day stand alone course, I saw people transform in ways that can take a lifetime. The most surprising part for me was my own transformation. Nothing as huge as I saw in others but none-the-less miraculous!

I had already taken eleven (yes 11!) Peak Potentials courses with T. Harv Eker and several other courses including a weekend wth Chris Howard. Somewhere in one of Harv's courses I had made the decision that "I would rather be happy than right" and I took that stand from that moment on. I thought I was finally out from under the grips of the need and compulsion to be right, which had not served me well in my life.

By the end of the first night of the Landmark Forum I came to the realization that I was still 'being' right and I hadn't even known it! I was stunned to find the hidden secrets I was keeping from myself. Without even being conscious of it I was being judgmental and rightous, which allowed me to be right while making others wrong. The amazing part is that I was not even aware of it, as it was hidden from my view. Can you imagine my surprise after several years of saying to others, "I would rather be happy than right"? I had actually believed my own words! I am guessing that others could see the truth, even if I couldn't.

What I had lost, by my unconscious need to be right, was close, authentic, loving relationships with all the people in my life! That was the stark reality of my being human and unaware of that which was hidden from my view. I don't want to settle for that.

In the next 2 and 1/2 days of the Landmark Forum I uncovered other parts of my past that were keeping me from full self expression, confidence and clarity, which unknowingly was affecting my life. By the end of the Forum my past was no longer affecting my present or my future. The past was complete and it was in my past...right where it belonged!

I have continued on with the Forum in Action seminar series, the Advanced course and the Self Expression and Leadership Program (SELP), which I am currently doing.

Thank you Landmark, and all the amazing people who volunteer their precious time at Landmark, for helping me and others find the secrets to living life powerfully and living a life you love!

With love and gratitude,

Dyann

So Much Gratitude and So Little Time!

I am grateful for so many people, places and things in my life and so embarrassed to have not been here to show my gratitude since Mother's Day.

Every day I wake up and go to bed with gratitude in my heart and on my lips. This is really a beautifully busy time for me and I have been wanting to get back here to acknowledge my gratitude for all the many blessings that occur daily in my life.

I am so incredibly grateful for finding my vision, focus and passion after so many years of searching. I am filled with gratitude for all the amazing mentors I have had these past seven years as I have redesigned my life after the sudden death of my husband, Lee Oberbeck, and the end of a very long career in real estate.

A few of the many, many people, places and things that have contributed to my life in countless ways are; Victor and Elise Lyon, Wild Bill Jones, Dr. Myron Wentz, T. Harv Eker, Simon U. Ford, Dr. Denis Waitley, Dr. Ray Strand, Tim Sales, Bob Burg, Eckhart Tolle, John C. Maxwell, Dr. Wayne Dyer, Napoleon Hill, Esther and Jerry Hicks, Cheryl Sheehan, Rosie Banks, Barb Schwarz, Landmark Education, traveling and so many more!

My life is gratitude and love in action and I am so grateful to be able to write these words, breathe and contribute. Wishing you love, passion and clarity in your life!

With love and gratitude,

Dyann

Grateful to be a Mother!

Happy Mother's Day to me!

Since Wild Bill and I were married in 2003 whenever asked about kids I always reply that "We have eight grown children between us as well as eight grandchildren". Prior to August 1997 when anyone asked me if I had children I would always reply, "No".

The thing that happened in August of 1997 was the most unexpected thing I could ever possibly have imagined. It reversed a deep pain of loss that I had been carrying with me for over 32 years, the pain of giving up my beautiful daughter for adoption after seeing her for only a few moments after her birth.

It's a long story, too long for a blog, and it includes my handsome son who was also given up for adoption at birth. These two precious babies were given to families that would love and raise them at a time when I was still a kid myself. Yet in the summer of 1997 my grown daughter and my adult son, raised by two different families on opposite sides of the country and unknown to each other, both tried to track me down. What are the odds of that? My daughter was successful in finding me. My son, who got as far as standing in front of a judge in the state he as born in, was not able to locate me. After my daughter and I met, through a search consultant that she hired, I found my son with the same help. They both said the exact same thing to me within minutes of our very first conversation by phone. It went something like this: "Thank you so much for giving me to such a great family". I cried when my daughter told me that and I may have when I spoke to my son, I don't recall.

It is now almost 12 years since I met my two beautiful grown children who now have four children of their own between them. I consider their parents, who did such a great job of raising them, dear friends and I will be forever grateful to them for being the families that chose my children to love and cherish as their own.

I have heard stories of birth parents and adopted children and their parents not getting along. We are all so fortunate, and I am extremely grateful, that we have had many opportunities to meet, eat and spend time together. My children's parents are all amazing and wonderful people! If I had hand picked parents for my two children I could not have chosen any better parents for them!

As I mentioned I have six other great kids. Each one is a treasure and a joy. I love all eight kids, their spouses and heir wonderful children as thought they were mine all along! Prior to 1997 I never expected to have any children, let alone grandchildren, in my life! I am truly Blessed!

With love and gratitude,

Dyann

I am Grateful for Simon U Ford and Social Traffic

The Silversword plant is only found on Haleakala on the beautiful island of Maui, Hawaii, which makes it very rare.

I am feeling deep gratitude for my friend Simon U Ford and Social Traffic a very rare find too!

I call Simon a friend because I know that I can count on him. I can count on him being honest and transparent. I can count on him to honor his word, even if there is an unfortunate glitch in the system he will make sure that you get what you bargained for! I can count on his integrity, he has proved that he will do what he says he will do. I can count on his honesty, he says it like it is and makes no apologies for being honest. You always know where he stands, what he wants and what he expects. There is no guessing with Simon. That is why Simon has a powerful network of committed and passionate followers. Because people will gladly follow a Leader that they can count on and trust that has a vision worth following!

For the past three months I have taken an online social networking course through Simon's Social Traffic Inc. I was in, what will always be known as, Wave #1...the very first class and the guinea pigs for the course. Wave #2 and Wave #3 soon joined in as the weeks went on. I was keenly aware that we were breaking new ground, with Simon as the leader, and I happily followed whenever he gave us an assignment. As time went on the group got smaller, more efficient and much more committed.

In addition to many other accomplishments, we managed to beat Google at their own game on Youtube! As we each did our part in helping Simon's "Google Friend Connect" video rise to Number One replacing Google's very own videos on the subject, we all cheered and continued to do whatever Simon asked of us. It was an exciting time as we, all former strangers from all across the globe, came together as a single minded force to follow where ever Simon led us. I trusted him by instinct. Most of us found him and became interested after following him for many months prior to the start of the course on his Blog, http://www.socialtraffic.biz/ where we got to read how this man thinks and what he values. As time has gone on the Blog has grown and yet the story of Simon U Ford and Social Traffic is all in there for the interested to peruse.

My course is now completed and I am ready to move on. (Except for two sessions that Simon is still creating. He will let me know about them when they are ready. That is the type of person he is...a man of honesty and integrity.) I learned so much from Simon and all of the many friends I have made that became a part of Social Traffic...not just about the Internet and social marketing but also about our Mother Earth and the importance of Earth Day...Everyday! I do not want to lose these wonderful heartfelt connections. So Simon, count me in for Earth Day 2010 and I will be bringing along my ten friends who will agree to find ten friends who will also agree to find ten friends...

Who would like to step up and be named as one of my ten friends that I can count on for next year's 40th Earth Day Celebration? You can then start looking for your ten also and we will be ready to rock and roll next year!

With gratitude, respect and admiration,
Dyann

I'm proud to be an American!

I'm proud to be an American!

Hey, that's a great title for a song!
















I'm proud to be married to an American! Actually, until my dear husband, Wild Bill Jones, became an American citizen April 9, 2009, I was proud to be married to a Canadian!

Now, after 5 1/2 years, I went from being married to a Canadian and having an International marriage to being married to an American. For me it all happened in a matter of hours while I sat in the back portion of the auditorium at the Homeland Security office in Tukwilla, Washington South of Seattle. It was a touching finale to all the time, money and effort my husband had exchanged for the privileges associated with becoming a naturalized American citizen. I cried while watching the two short videos, one on the many faces that have crossed our shores and borders to live the American Dream and the other with Lee Greenwood singing "I'm proud to be an American!" with wonderful heartfelt images. I sat expectantly through the speeches about the many freedoms we Americans all enjoy and I cried some more when my husband and 122 other people, from 41 different countries, all stood with their right hand raised to take the oath to finally be first class citizens in the United States.

For Wild Bill it was a much longer process, 5 1/2 years to be exact. First he needed an Immigration attorney to help him traverse the tricky and challenging changes in immigration laws since September 11, 2001. The first thing we were told is that Wild Bill could not leave the US, and be assured of being able to return, because he didn't have the proper travel documents. Then the real fun began...He needed to take the time to be fingerprinted and I needed to accompany him on an interview with Homeland Security to prove we were married. If you have ever seen the movie "Green Card" it will give you an idea what that was like. At one point he was told to write four separate checks to the FBI, CIA, INS and Homeland Security for background security checks, which took forever, because his name was William Arthur Jones and there are a lot of William A. Jones world wide, with records not suitable for immigrating to the US, that had to be checked against my husband's records.

The first success came when he received his work permit months after the process began. In the meantime we had been invited to his youngest son, Aaron's, wedding in Toronto a few months out. While he was waiting for his temporary green card to arrive we were making plans to attend the wedding. Unfortunately the green card didn't arrive in time, but a letter saying it was on the way soon did arrive and we went to the wedding with letter in hand. At the Toronto airport, the morning of our return to the US, my husband was detained because US Immigration did not like the way the letter looked. Rather than recount the story, just know that the US Government is serious about detaining people if they have any doubts whatsoever. We learned that lesson on several other occasions at US borders and I came to think of my husband as being like a dolphin getting caught in the tuna nets.

After having a temporary green card for two years he was able to apply for his permanent resident card which, by the way, is good for only ten years. He could not leave the US during that time as he had to give up his temporary green card when he processed the paperwork for his permanent green card. This created a new dilemma for us as we received word that his middle son, Lloyd, was going to be married in London in the fall. We waited again to have the necessary documents so we could travel to the wedding. This time he did get his permanent green card in time to travel to the wedding and from that point on we never had any trouble traveling again!

Somewhere along the way my husband decided he wanted to participate in his adoptd homeland in a much bigger way and also be able to vote. So he very quietly went about the business of doing all the paperwork required to become an American citizen; months of gathering papers together, reading books and studying for the test he would have to pass. Finally the day came and he went by himself to Homeland Security to take the test and be interviewed so that he could be a Naturalized citizen of the United Sates of America.

After passing the test my husband decided to do something he had wanted to do for a long time...he changed his name offcially and legally to Wild Bill Jones. After he was sworn in last week, with the other 122 people from 41 different countries, he patiently waited for his name to be called. I think at least 100 different names were called before I heard "Wild Bill Jones" from the podium. When I heard his name I rose from my seat so that I could photograph him walking, with a lilt in his step, to receive his certificate of naturalization!

I am so honored and grateful to have been a witness to the naturalization process that Wild Bill experienced over the past 5 1/2 years. When we were first married neither one of us expected that he would become an American citizen. However, after living here I could see that he was feeling like he couldn't fully contribute in his new homeland. Now he can!

I am honored to be married to the American I proudly call my husband, Wild Bill Jones!

With love and gratitude,
Dyann

Post Scrip: It is now a year later and I just re-read this for the first time since I posted it and must admit it made me cry. Tomorrow marks the one year anniversary of Wild becoming a naturalized American citizen. Everything has become so much easier, especially travel, since Wild now has an American passport. Once he received all his paperwork it became clear that his first name is Wild and his middle is Bill I have taken to calling my husband Wild. I like it...short and sweet, just like him! Many of our friends and family call  him Wild and a lot of people seem to get a real kick out of calling him Wild Bill. When he introduces himself to people, very often they do not believe his real name is Wild Bill. I have seen him pull out his drivers license many times to gales of laughter! When we travel through airports the security often comment on his name when they see his passport. They have actually shown a sense of humor when he passes through their interview process. He lives up to his name and I love him more each day. I am honored to have Wild as my husband, business partner and best friend!

Happy First Anniversary of your American citizenship dear husband!

With love and admiration,
Dyann

Project Purpose and Landmark Education

Day 29 of Project Purpose
















I am incredibly grateful for Project Purpose which is almost one third of the way into the 90 day program.

Our coach and leader for this project, Patti Roney, has gently and powerfully allowed each of the 750 of us that have commited to the project to grow and stretch. I have experienced new ways to express gratitude, joy, forgiveness, giving and purpose which all seem to expand throughout my body mind and spirit! Thank you Patti for your loving leadership!

Each morning before we get out of bed my husband and I spend about 15 minutes recounting to ourselves the many things we are grateful for. With a champaign flute of REV3, to toast the gratitude ceremony with, we have the perfect start to our day! I have found that by being consciously in gratitude, at least once in every 24 hour period, it is almost impossible to be angry, down, negative, depressed, hostile or any othe emotion or way of being that is at all negative. By being in a state of gratitude so frequently it is so much easier to appreciate every little blessing and also be in a state of abundance, harmony, love and freedom. WOW! There really is something to this! Even after the 90 day project is complete I will continue to take the time each and every day to be grateful for all that I have.

In addition I am taking the Landmark Education series and tonight is week #2 of ten of the Landmark Forum in Action Seminar series. The Landmark Forum, a few weeks back, was a wonderful transformational time of insight into "rackets", mine in particular! I had no idea what a racket was and certinally didn't imagine that I actually had one...what could possibly be my racket? Well, I now know of at least one and suspect there are more! In the interest of perhaps helping someone else I am going to put myself out there and risk sharing it with you.

First of all I would like to say that many years ago I had decided that I would rather be "happy than right"... so I have practiced that ever since. Well imagine my shock when I realized that underneath my conscious level I was still needing to be right. Yep, that's my racket! I have been doing it without even realizing it by my frequent thoughts and attitude that people didn't;
-RSVP to parties
-Do what they agreed to do
-Keep appointments
-Show up a agreed

Or they complained about something and didn't do anything to fix it like;
-Have poor health and still eat poorly, never exercise and smoke
-Are overweight and still keep eating processed and fast food on a daily basis
-They're always broke and they spend money they don't have on things they don't need

I think you get the idea! Well, now that I know what my racket is I can see it clearly whenever it shows up. I also have realized that it creates a lens in which we see the world around us. What my racket gives me is the opportunity to be right while others are wrong. That is not what I want in my life. In fact it also keeps me distanced from people and makes it hard to create loving connections with all the people I care about. Whew! That is huge and I am doing whatever I can to offset that by being as open, authentic and compassionate as I can be.

So, what is your racket? Get yourself to a Landmark Education meeting and you will discover it! Landmark has been around for a long time and these people know how to help you live a better, more joyful, loving, authentic, happy life!

I am so blessed and grateful to be able to attend Landmark in order to peel a few more layers off the onion so that I can be the best light I can in the world. With Patti's Project Purpose happening along with the Landmark series I am getting so fine-tuned that I am bursting at the seams with purpose, joy, gratitude and love!

With love and gratitude,
Dyann